Grant-less operations

ABSTRACT

Current approaches to transmitting uplink data in a network often require resources to be granted. In an example, a node or apparatus may configure a plurality of devices to operate in a grant-less mode in accordance with a respective grant-less access allocation. Grant-less operations may be managed, for example, to meet the reliability and latency requirements and battery life requirements for different types of devices. For example, the state transition between grant-less and grant based may be managed.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/624,506 filed Jun. 15, 2017 which claims the benefit of priority toU.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/350,550, filed Jun. 15, 2016,U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/373,691 filed Aug. 11, 2016,and U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/401,062, filed Sep. 28,2016, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference in theirentireties.

BACKGROUND

International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT) for 2020 and beyond (e.g.,IMT 2020) is envisaged to expand and support diverse families of usagescenarios and applications that will continue beyond the current IMT.Furthermore, a broad variety of capabilities may be tightly coupled withthese different usage scenarios. Example families of usage scenariosinclude enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Ultra-Reliable and Low LatencyCommunications (URLLC), massive Machine Type Communications (mMTC), andNetwork Operations. Example operating characteristics of eMBB mayinclude macro and small cells, 1 ms Latency (air interface), support forhigh mobility, etc. Example operating characteristics of URLLC mayinclude low to medium data rates (e.g., 50 kbps-10 Mbps), less than 1 msair interface latency, 99.999% reliability and availability, lowconnection establishment latency, 0-500 km/h mobility, etc. Example mMTCoperating characteristics may include low data date (e.g., 1-100 kbps),high density of devices (e.g., 200,000/km2), varying latency, low powerrequired (e.g., up to 15 years battery autonomy), asynchronous access,etc. Network operations address various subjects such as NetworkSlicing, Routing, Migration and Interworking, Energy Saving, etc.

With respect to New Radio (NR) requirements, 3GPP TR 38.913 definesscenarios and requirements for New Radio (NR) technologies. KeyPerformance Indicators (KPIs) for URLLC and mMTC devices are summarizedin Table 1 below:

TABLE 1 KPIs for URLLC and mMTC Devices Device KPI DescriptionRequirement URLLC Control Plane Control plane latency refers to the timeto move from 10 ms Latency a battery efficient state (e.g., IDLE) tostart of continuous data transfer (e.g., ACTIVE). Data Plane For URLLCthe target for user plane latency for UL 0.5 ms Latency and DL.Furthermore, if possible, the latency should also be low enough tosupport the use of the next generation access technologies as a wirelesstransport technology that can be used within the next generation accessarchitecture. Reliability Reliability can be evaluated by the success1-10⁻⁵ probability of transmitting X bytes ^(NOTE1) within 1 ms, within1 ms. which is the time it takes to deliver a small data packet from theradio protocol layer 2/3 SDU ingress point to the radio protocol layer2/3 SDU egress point of the radio interface, at a certain channelquality (e.g., coverage-edge). NOTE1: Specific value for X is FFS. mMTCCoverage “Maximum coupling loss” (MCL) in uplink and 164 dB downlinkbetween device and Base Station site (antenna connector(s)) for a datarate of [X bps], where the data rate is observed at the egress/ingresspoint of the radio protocol stack in uplink and downlink. UE BatteryUser Equipment (UE) battery life can be evaluated 15 years Life by thebattery life of the UE without recharge. For mMTC, UE battery life inextreme coverage shall be based on the activity of mobile originateddata transfer consisting of [200 bytes] Uplink (UL) per day followed by[20 bytes] Downlink (DL) from Maximum Coupling Loss (MCL) of [tbd] dB,assuming a stored energy capacity of [5 Wh]. Connection Connectiondensity refers to total number of devices 10⁶ Density fulfillingspecific Quality of Service (QoS) per unit devices/km² area (per km²).QoS definition should take into account the amount of data or accessrequest generated within a time t_gen that can be sent or receivedwithin a given time, t_sendrx, with x % probability.

System Information (SI) is the information broadcast by the EvolvedUniversal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) that needs to beacquired by a UE so that the UE can access and operate within thenetwork. SI is divided into the MasterInformationBlock (MIB) and anumber of SystemInformationBlocks (SIBs). A high level description ofthe MIB and SIBs is provided in 3GPP TS 36.300. Detailed descriptionsare available in 3GPP TS 36.331. Examples of SI is shown in Table 2below.

TABLE 2 System Information Information Block Description MIB Defines themost essential physical layer information of the cell required toreceive further system information SIB1 Contains information relevantwhen evaluating if a UE is allowed to access a cell and defines thescheduling of other system information SIB2 Radio resource configurationinformation that is common for all UEs SIB3 Cell re-selectioninformation common for intra-frequency, inter-frequency and/or inter-RATcell re-selection (i.e. applicable for more than one type of cell re-selection but not necessarily all) as well as intra-frequency cellre-selection information other than neighboring cell related SIB4Neighboring cell related information relevant only for intra-frequencycell re- selection SIB5 Information relevant only for inter-frequencycell re-selection i.e. information about other E UTRA frequencies andinter-frequency neighboring cells relevant for cell re-selection SIB6Information relevant only for inter-RAT cell re-selection i.e.information about UTRA frequencies and UTRA neighboring cells relevantfor cell re-selection SIB7 Information relevant only for inter-RAT cellre-selection i.e. information about GERAN frequencies relevant for cellre-selection SIB8 Information relevant only for inter-RAT cellre-selection i.e. information about CDMA2000 frequencies and CDMA2000neighboring cells relevant for cell re- selection SIB9 Home eNB name(HNB Name) SIB10 ETWS primary notification SIB11 ETWS secondarynotification SIB12 CMAS notification SIB13 Information required toacquire the MBMS control information associated with one or more MBSFNareas SIB14 EAB parameters SIB15 MBMS Service Area Identities (SAI) ofthe current and/or neighboring carrier frequencies SIB16 Informationrelated to GPS time and Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) SIB17Information relevant for traffic steering between E-UTRAN and WLAN SIB18Indicates E-UTRAN supports the Sidelink UE information procedure and maycontain sidelink communication related resource configurationinformation SIB19 Indicates E-UTRAN supports the Sidelink UE informationprocedure and may contain sidelink discovery related resourceconfiguration information SIB20 Contains the information required toacquire the control information associated transmission of MBMS usingSC-PTM

Turning now to UE information states, a UE can be in different statesafter powering up—“Idle” or “Packet Communication” as shown in FIG. 1,which are fully managed by EPS Mobility Management (EMM), EPS ConnectionManagement (ECM), and the Radio Resource Control (RRC) functions. Thedetails are summarized in Table 3, FIG. 2, and Table 4.

TABLE 3 UE in EMM, ECM and RRC states Case State UE eNB S-GW P-GW MNEHSS PCRF SPR A EMM-Deregistered + — — — — — — — — ECM-Idle + RRC-Idle BEMM-Deregistered + — — — — TAI of MME — — EMC-Idle + RRC-Idle last TAU CEMM-Registered + — Cell/eNB Cell/eNB Cell/eNB Cell/eNB MME Cell/eNB —ECM-Connected D EMM-Registered + — — TAI of TAI of TAI of MME TAI of —ECM-Idle + RRC-Idle last TAU last TAU last TAU last TAU

TABLE 4 UE Location Information Set in Each EPS Entity Case State UE eNBS-GW P-GW MNE HSS PCRF SPR A EMM-Deregistered + — — — — — — — —ECM-Idle + RRC-Idle B EMM-Deregistered + — — — — TAI of MME — —EMC-Idle + RRC-Idle last TAU C EMM-Registered + — Cell/eNB Cell/eNBCell/eNB Cell/eNB MME Cell/eNB — ECM-Connected D EMM-Registered + — —TAI of TAI of TAI of MME TAI of — ECM-Idle + RRC-Idle last TAU last TAUlast TAU last TAU

More example details are shown in FIG. 3, which shows an exampleRRC_IDLE and RRC_CONNECTED state. With respect to the RRC_IDLE state,there is no RRC context in the Radio Access Network (RAN), and the UEdoes not belong to a specific cell. No data transfer may take place inRRC_IDLE. A UE is in a low-power state and listens to control traffic(control channel broadcasts), such as paging notifications of inboundtraffic and changes to the system information. In RRC_IDLE, a given UEmay first synchronize itself to the network by listening to the networkbroadcasts, and then may issue a request to the RRC to be moved to the“connected” state to establish the RRC context between the RAN and theUE. In LTE-Advanced, the target time was further reduced to 50 ms.

With respect to the RRC_CONNECTED state, there is an RRC context andresource assignment for a UE. The cell to which the UE belongs is knownand an identity of the UE (the Cell Radio-Network Temporary Identifier(C-RNTI)), which is used for signaling purposes between the UE and thenetwork, has been configured. In RRC_CONNECTED, the UE is in ahigh-power state and is ready to transmit to, or receive data from, theEvolved Node B (eNB). Discontinuous Reception (DRX) is used to conserveUE power in RRC-CONNECTED. In some cases, each radio transmission, nomatter how small, forces a transition to a high-power state. Then, oncethe transmission is done, the radio will remain in this high-power stateuntil the inactivity timer has expired. The size of the actual datatransfer does not influence the timer. Further, the device may then alsohave to cycle through several more intermediate states before it canreturn back to idle. It is recognized herein that the “energy tails”generated by the timer-driven state transitions, as shown in FIG. 4,make periodic transfers a very inefficient network access pattern onmobile networks.

SUMMARY

It is recognized herein that grant-less operations may be bettermanaged, for example, to meet the URLLC's reliability and latencyrequirements and mMTC devices' battery life requirements. For example,the state transition between grant-less and grant based may be bettermanaged.

In various examples, fast synchronization for contention basedgrant-less uplink transmission may include a synchronization pilot usedfor UL frequency and time synchronization, a timing advance adjustmentestimated by UE, transmit power control for contention based grant-lessuplink transmission, UL path loss estimation based on the measurement onthe DL reference signal and the DL transmit power in the DCI, and/orquasi-closed loop power control by using the power information collectedby UE.

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Furthermore,the claimed subject matter is not limited to limitations that solve anyor all disadvantages noted in any part of this disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more detailed understanding may be had from the following description,given by way of example in conjunction with accompanying drawingswherein:

FIG. 1 shows states of operations associated with an example userequipment (UE);

FIG. 2 shows examples of EMM, ECM, and Radio Resource Control (RRC)state transitions;

FIG. 3 shows an example RRC protocol state machine;

FIG. 4 shows an example of an RRC-CONNECTED Discontinued Reception(DRX);

FIG. 5 shows an example use case that includes a power grid of a smartcity;

FIG. 6 shows example RRC operation states in accordance with an exampleembodiment;

FIG. 7 shows example RRC operation states in accordance with anotherexample embodiment;

FIG. 8 depicts downlink synchronization and reference pilots;

FIGS. 9A and 9B depict a flow chart for grant-less operation with fastsynchronization in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 10 depicts an example of open loop transmit power control forgrant-less UL;

FIGS. 11A and 11B depict a flow chart for grant-less operation with openloop power control in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIGS. 12A-13B depict a call flow for grant-less UL transmission for mMTCdevices in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIGS. 14A-15B depict another example call flow for grant-less ULtransmission for URLLC devices in accordance with another exampleembodiment;

FIGS. 16A-17B depict an example procedure for grant-less UL transmissionfor mMTC devices in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIGS. 18A-19B depict an example procedure for grant-less UL transmissionfor URLLC devices in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIGS. 20A and 20B depict an example call flow for registration andgrant-less setup in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIGS. 21A and 21B depict an example call flow for grant-less and grantUL transmissions for URLLC devices, in accordance with an exampleembodiment;

FIGS. 22A and 22B depict an example call flow for grant-less and grantUL transmissions for mMTC devices, in accordance with an exampleembodiment;

FIG. 23 is an example GUI for UE configuration in accordance with anexample embodiment;

FIG. 24A illustrates one embodiment of an example communications systemin which the methods and apparatuses described and claimed herein may beembodied;

FIG. 24B is a block diagram of an example apparatus or device configuredfor wireless communications in accordance with the embodimentsillustrated herein;

FIG. 24C is a system diagram of an example radio access network (RAN)and core network in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 24D is another system diagram of a RAN and core network accordingto another embodiment;

FIG. 24E is another system diagram of a RAN and core network accordingto another embodiment; and

FIG. 24F is a block diagram of an exemplary computing system 90 in whichone or more apparatuses of the communications networks illustrated inFIGS. 24C-F may be embodied.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

As an initial matter, for different radio access network (RAN)architectures, the mechanisms described herein may be conducted at anNR-node, Transmission and Reception Point (TRP), or Remote Radio Head(RRH), as well as the central controller in RAN or control function in aRAN slice. Unless otherwise specified, the mechanisms described hereinmay applicable to TRP, RRH, central controller, and control functions indifferent RAN architectures.

Referring now to FIG. 5, an example use case is shown in which differentsensors or monitoring devices of an example Smart City's power gridsystem 500 are illustrated. Sensors of a Smart Home 502 (e.g., massiveMachine Type Communications (mMTC devices) may send electrical usagedata once a week or a month with a very relaxed latency requirement.Sensors on a Smart City's Power Transmission Network 504 (e.g.,Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLLC) devices) maymonitor the power level continually and report to a Grid MonitoringSystem 506 periodically, but when an abnormal power level is detected,for example, it is recognized herein that the sensors 504 need to sendthe warning to the Grid Monitoring System 506 immediately so that theGrid Monitoring System 506 may shut down the malfunctioned power supplysystem, and so that a backup power supply system can be implementedinstantly to avoid possible damage to the Smart City's power grid system500 and to avoid negative impacts to the Smart City's operations.

By way of another example use case, forest fire monitoring sensors(e.g., mission critical MTC devices), can send small data periodicallywith a very low duty cycle, but they might need to send a fire warningmessage or messages immediately and reliably. These devices may belocated sparsely and may cover a large area of the forest. The devicesmay also have constrained battery life (e.g., 15 or 20 years).

By way of yet another example use case, medical devices on an ambulancemay be active while carrying the patient to the emergency room. Forexample, Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLLC) devicescan send the patient's temperature and blood pressure data and heartmonitoring images to the hospital and the doctor's office. It will beunderstood that embodiments described herein can be applied to a varietyof use cases as desired.

The use cases may utilize URLLC and mMTC devices. For example, URLLCdevices without battery constraint may support both small and medium ULdata rate transmission with ultra-low latency and very high reliability.URLLC or mission critical MTC devices with battery constraint mightsupport small UL data rate transmission with ultra-low latency and veryhigh reliability. mMTC devices with battery constraint and denseconnections might support small UL data rate transmission eitherprescheduled or tolerant to long latency.

As exemplified by the above uses cases, URLLC devices may fail thelatency requirement for UL data transmission if the current grant-basedUL data transmission in LTE systems is used. With respect to mMTCdevices, the signaling overhead for UL grant messages may be verysignificant as compared to infrequent small UL data transmissions. It isrecognized herein that this challenges the battery life requirement formMTC devices. To reduce UL transmission signaling overhead for mMTCdevices and to reduce UL transmission latency for URLLC devices,multiple access mechanisms including, for example, UL-grant lesstransmission, contention-based transmissions, non-orthogonal multipleaccess, may be used. As described below, embodiments perform grant-lessUL transmission that can meet the ultra-reliability and low latencyrequirements for non-power-constrained URLLC devices. Further,embodiments described herein perform grant-less UL transmission thatmeet the battery life requirement for mMTC devices.

Referring now to FIG. 4, after transmitting a small packet data 402, adevice may have to stay at the high-power transmitting state until aninactivity timer has expired, and then it has to cycle through a numberof short DRX cycles 404 with a reduced sleep time before longer DRXcycles 406, during which the device can sleep for a longer sleep time.It is recognized herein that these timer-driven state transitions canmake low duty cycle small data transfers inefficient. In accordance withvarious examples, dual operation states are now described in which adevice may be directed by the higher layer or an NR-node to operate at aGrant-less operation state for low duty cycle small data communication,for example, to reduce latency and save battery power with reducedsignaling and extended timers; or at a Grant operation state, forexample, for more frequent medium or high volume data communications.

An example implementation of this dual-state operation may be performedby traffic monitoring devices. In some cases, a traffic monitoringdevice may operate in a Grant-less operation state to periodically sendsmall traffic report data, and the traffic monitoring device may switchto a Grant operation state for uploading larger image data, for instanceimage data related to traffic event (e.g., traffic accident). The higherlayer may configure or direct a device's operation in the Grantoperation mode or Grant-less operation mode after power up. In anexample, a mission critical MTC device may operate in Grant-lessoperation mode with reduced signaling to save batter power, and adigital patient monitor without battery constraint may operate in theGrant operation mode to transmit large image files continuously.

In an alternative embodiment, the NR-node may configure a given UE thatis already operating in a Grant state, such that the UE switches to agrant-less state operation. Similarly, the NR-Node may configure a givenUE that is operating in grant-less state, to switch to a grant stateoperation. The NR-node may configure the UE to operate in a Grant-lessstate based on various information (inputs), such as, for example andwithout limitation: a service type, bearer type, traffic flow type, anetwork slice type and/or requirements related to a network slice, aphysical layer numerology or frame structure in use, a measurementreport from the UE (e.g., RSRP, RSRQ, battery level, Buffer StatusReport, etc.), QoS attributes (e.g., latency, reliability, guarantee ULbit rate, minimum UL bite rate, maximum UL bit rate etc.), and/or arequest from UE to operate in such a state.

In some examples, a UE may request the network to be configured forGrant-less operation. Such a request may be allowed or granted.Similarly, based on various inputs such as the example inputs describedabove, a network may configure a UE that is operating in a Grant-lessstate to switch so as to operate in a grant state. In some examples, aUE may send a capability bit indication to the network to indicate thatit is able to operate in various states (e.g., grant-less or grant).Similarly, the network may send an indication to the UE that it canoperate in dual states (e.g., grant-less and grant). The indication maybe signaled to the UE through common RRC signaling, for example, by thepresence of certain system information blocks (SIB) or InformationElements (IE) in a SIB. Alternatively, the indication may be signaled tothe UE via dedicated signaling (e.g., an RRC unicast message to the UE).

In another embodiment, a given may autonomously transition between thegrant-less state and the grant state. In some cases, the UE may make adetermination to transition based on assistance information signaled tothe UE through common RRC signaling or dedicated signaling (e.g., RRCunicast message or MAC CE signaling). Such a transition determination atthe UE may be based on various information, such as for example andwithout limitation: service type, bearer type, traffic flow type,network slice type, physical layer numerology or frame structure in use,measurement report from UE (e.g., RSRP, RSRQ, battery level, BufferStatus Report, etc.), QoS attributes (e.g. latency, reliability,guarantee UL bit rate, minimum UL bite rate, maximum UL bit rate, etc.

In some cases, the grant-less state may viewed as a connected state fromthe core network perspective, such that a signaling connection ismaintained between the core network (e.g., NextGen Core) and an NR-Node(e.g., NextGen RAN Node).

In an example grant-less state, a given UE may perform RAN levelregistration toward the RAN. The UE identity for such registration maybe a RAN level identity or core network level identity. In some cases,such a registration follows procedures that are specific to the RANspecific, and therefore transparent to the core network. A reachabilitystatus associated with the UE while the UE is in the grant-less statemay be maintained in the RAN. Similarly, a mobility status associatedwith the UE while the UE is in the grant-less state may be maintained inthe RAN. In the grant-less state, mobility may be controlled by the UEwith assistance (information) from the NR-node. In a grant-less state,the UE may also perform registration toward the core network, such as byperforming an attach procedure.

Referring now to FIG. 6, an example dual-state operation 600 is shown.The dual state operation may be implemented by a UE that can operate ina grant-less state (or mode) 602 and a grant state (or mode) 604. Thedual-state operation 600 may allow a UE to transfer from the grant-lessstate 602 to the grant state 604 if the UE receives a Grant Operationcommand 606 from its higher layer (e.g., NAS or application layer). Byway of example, the application layer of the UE may identify an accidentfrom a traffic monitor, and then direct a UE Radio Resource Control(RRC) state to switch to the Grant state 604 for uploading images orvideo of the accident. The UE RRC may alternatively transfer from theGrant state 604 to the Grant-less state 602 upon receiving a Grant-lessOperation command 608 from its higher layer. In some cases, thetransition between the Grant state 602 and Grant-less state 604 may bedirected by the NR-node or determined by UE. Thus, the grant operationcommand 606 and the grant-less operation command 608 may be receivedfrom a RAN node (e.g., NR-node) or generated within the UE. Thegrant-less state 602 may include an Inactive state 602 a and an Activestate 602 b, thus UE may transfer from the Inactive state 602 a to theActive state 602 b within the grant-less state, for example, when the UEhas data to receive or transmit. In some cases, the UE transfers back tothe Inactive state 602 a immediately after receiving or transferringsmall data. In an example, the UE does not have to go through Short DRxand Long DRx cycles for returning back to the Inactive state 602 a afterreceiving or transmitting a small packet data within the grant-lessstate 602. Thus, signaling and cycles may be reduced in the grant-lessstate 602 as compared the grant state 604, so as to improve latency andbattery life. While in the Inactive state 602 a, the UE may operate in apower saving mode, which may use less power than the Sleeping mode forDRx cycles, thereby conserving battery power.

Various context information associated with a UE (referred to as UEcontext) may be contained at an NR-node to avoid message exchanges withthe Core network (CN) over an S1-like interface for re-establishing theradio connection or bearers when transferring from the Inactive state602 a to the Active state 602 b. Thus, in some examples, less messagesare exchanged when the UE transfers from the Inactive state 602 a to theActive state 602 b as compared to when the UE transfers from an RRC_IDLEstate 604 a to a RRC_CONNECTED state 604 b within the grant state 604.Example context information includes, presented without limitation:IMSI, LTE K, default APN, EPS QoS Subscribed Profile, Access Profile,NAS Security Context, last Globally Unique Temporary UE Identity (GUTI),last Tracking Area Indicator (TAD, last S1 TEID, C-RNTI, AS SecurityContext, last bearer IDs, etc. The context information may reducemessage exchanges, thereby conserving battery power of the UE, such asfor a UE that includes a battery constrained sensor that has staticmobility.

To conserve battery power, in accordance with an example embodiment, aUE is described herein that does not have to listen to control channelbroadcasts frequently for paging notifications of inbound traffic, orfor changes to the system information, because its traffic consists ofuplink small data and downlink triggers or maintenance messages from anIoT service system. Such downlink triggers and messages may beinfrequent, and may be prescheduled in many scenarios. Therefore, insome cases, it is recognized herein that the timer for wake up to listento the control channel may be extended significantly by the device type,service, mobility, etc. By way of example, sparsely distributed forestfire monitoring sensors may wake up once a day, which is significantlonger than the wake-up timer in the Grant operation state 604, if thereis no UL transmission. Further, a UE, such as a sparsely distributedforest fire monitoring sensor, may wake up to check the control channelbroadcasting first before it transmits a report or “keep alive” messageto an NR-node.

In another example, to conserve battery power, a UE, such as an MTCdevice that monitors forest fires, may wake up to perform measurementsonly when it wakes up to transmit a report or keep alive message to anNR-node. Further, in an example, the UE may perform cell reselect onlyif the link measurement is below a predetermined threshold. Thus, thetimer for wake up for measurements and/or cell reselection may beextended significantly as compared to other devices, based on variousparameters of the UE such as device type, service, mobility, etc.

In yet another example, to conserve battery power, is recognized hereinthat a UE with low or static mobility can be configured to transfer tothe Active state infrequently (e.g., once a day) to send a Reachabilityand Mobility Status Update (RMSU) to an NR-node. In an example, the RMSUinformation may be sent with an UL report or “keep alive” messageassociated with the UE, in an Information Element (IE) field to anNR-node.

In an example embodiment, one of co-located (i.e. virtually grouped) RFID tags or wearable devices with medium or high mobility may schedule orrandomly send RMSU message for the virtual group.

Referring again to FIG. 6, while in the Active state 602 b, the UE mayoperate at a high power for transmitting or receiving, and then returnto the Inactive state 602 b, and thus operate at less power, directlywithout going through the DRx cycles 604 d and 604 e as in theRRC_CONNECTED state 604 b of the Grant state 604, so as to avoidunnecessary DRx cycles for a sporadic small data transmission, which mayalso decrease signaling for improved latency and battery lifeperformance. In an alternative embodiment, the Grant-less state 602 mayinclude only the Inactive mode 602 of operation with no datatransmission. The Grant-less channel resources in this case might onlybe used to request resource allocation for predefined specific servicessuch as URLLC services. Continuing with the example, when the UE isgranted resources, the UE may then transfer to the Grant state 604(e.g., RRC-CONNECTED state 604 b of NR RRC equivalent state beforetransmitting UL data.

Thus, in accordance with various embodiments described herein,mechanisms for grant-less and grant based transmissions are disclosed.Grant-less and grant states are further described below. Examples ofGrant-less and Grant operations with various state transitions betweenGrant-less and Grant are now described in further detail.

Turning first to Grant-less Operations, as shown in FIG. 4, in the GrantState, a device may cycle through a number of DRx cycles 404 and 406after transmitting a small packet data 402, and then the device maytransfer to the RRC_IDLE state 604 a (FIG. 6). It is recognized hereinthat these timer-driven state transitions can make low duty cycle smalldata transfers inefficient.

Referring now to FIG. 7, another example dual-state operation 700 isshown. The dual state operation 700 may be implemented by a UE that canoperate in a grant-less state (or mode) 702 and a grant state (or mode)704. The dual-state operation 700 may allow the UE to transfer from thegrant-less state 702 to the grant state 704 if the UE receives a Grantcommand 706 from its higher layer (e.g., NAS or application layer) orfrom an NR-node. As described above, the UE may be configured ordirected to operate at the grant state 704, for example, for morefrequent medium or high volume data communication. The higher layer orNR-node may configure the UE to operate in the Grant-less state 702,based on various information, such as, for example without limitation:service type, bearer type, traffic flow type, network slice type and/orrequirements, physical layer numerology or frame structure in use,measurement report from UE (e.g., RSSI, RSRP, RSRQ, QCI, battery level,Buffer Status Report, etc.), QoS attributes, e.g. latency, reliability(e.g., bit error rate or packet error rate, guarantee UL bit rate,minimum UL bite rate, maximum UL bit rate etc.), and/or a request fromUE to operate in such state.

In another example embodiment, the UE may autonomously transitionbetween the grant-less state 702 and the grant state 704. The UE maymake such a decision based on assistance information signaled to the UEthrough, for example, common RRC signaling or dedicated signaling (e.g.,RRC unicast message or MAC CE signaling). Such a transition decision atthe UE may be based on service type, bearer type, traffic flow type,network slice type, physical layer numerology or frame structure in use,measurement report from UE (e.g., RSRP, RSRQ, battery level, BufferStatus Report, etc.), QoS attributes (e.g., latency, reliability,guarantee UL bit rate, minimum UL bite rate, maximum UL bit rate), etc.

In some examples, the Grant-less state 702 may be a Registered statefrom the core network perspective, such that the core network is awareof information concerning the UE (e.g., UE context, current location ofthe UE in a cell, tracking area of the UE, etc.) The UE may beregistered with the core network via an attach procedure to the corenetwork. Alternatively, the UE may be configured and/or pre-registeredby the system administration in a controlled and secured network.Therefore, the UE may be in a Core Registered state.

In some examples, the grant-less state 702 include a semi-connectedstate 702 a or a connected state 702 b from a core network perspective,where a signaling connection (e.g., NR S1-like) is maintained betweenthe core network and the an NR-Node (RAN Node or apparatus). In somecases, the semi-connected state 702 a may also be referred to as aninactive state. In some examples, radio resources and network resourceshave been allocated when the UE is in the semi-connected state 702 a orthe connected state 702 b. In an example, a given UE is in the Connectedstate 702 b if dedicated resources are allocated specifically to the UE.In an example, a given UE is in the semi-connected state 702 a ifdedicated resources are allocated to a group of UEs and the UE isauthorized to share the resources of the group. Thus, in an example ofthe Semi-connected state 702 b, a UE may share dedicated resources withother UEs.

The Grant-less state 702 include the Semi-connected state 702 a and theConnected state 702 b, such that a UE may in the semi-connected state702 a or the connected state 702 b, from the perspective of the RAN,when the UE is in the grant-less state 702. When the UE is in theConnected state 702 b, dedicated radio resources may be allocatedspecifically to the UE. For example, the resources may be pre-configuredfor the UE, such that the UE may conduct autonomous UL transmissionwithout an explicit UL grant, using the resources. When the UE is inSemi-connected state 702, dedicated radio resources may be allocated toa group of UEs, and the UE may be authorized to share the radioresources. For example, in the Semi-connected state 702 a, a UE mayshare the dedicated resources with other UEs via contention based radionetwork accessing.

To simplify the examples now described, the Semi-connected state 702 ais often used for exemplary purposes, but the mechanisms proposedherein, unless otherwise specified, are applicable to both theSemi-connected state 702 a and the Connected state 702 b of theGrant-less state 702.

In the Grant-less state 702, the UE may perform RAN level registrationtoward the RAN. The UE identity for such registration may be a RAN levelidentity or a core network level identity. In some cases, the procedurefor such registration may be RAN specific and therefore transparent tothe core network. The UE reachability status and/or mobility status inGrant-less state 702 may be maintained in the RAN. In the Grant-lessstate 702, in some cases, mobility may be UE controlled mobility withassistance (information) from the NR-node.

In some cases, the transition between the Grant state 704 and theGrant-less state 702 state may be determined by the UE, for example, bysending a request to the NR-node after meeting certain criteria for thestate transition. The state transition criteria may be based on thefollowing information, presented by way of example and withoutlimitation: service type, bearer type, traffic flow type, network slicetype and/or requirements associated with the UE, physical layernumerology or frame structure that a UE is capable of or configuredwith, measurement or status collected by a UE (e.g., RSSI, RSRP, RSRQ,QCI, battery level, Buffer Status Report, etc.), and/or datatransceiving QoS requirements of the UE (e.g., latency, reliability suchas bit error rate or packet error rate, guarantee bit rate, minimumand/or maximum bite rate, etc.).

As described above, and as illustrated in FIG. 7, in some cases, the UEtransfers from an RRC_IDLE state 708 to the semi-connected state 702 a(RRC_SEMI-CONNECTED) when there is data to receive or transmit, and thenthe UE may transfers back to the RRC_IDLE state 708 state immediatelyafter receiving or transferring, for example, small data. Thus, the UEdoes not have to go through Short DRx 704 a and Long DRx 704 b cyclesfor returning back to the RRC_IDLE state 708, as it might in the Grantstate 704. This reduced signaling and cycles as compared the Grant state704, for example, may improve latency and battery life.

In some cases, while operating at the RRC_IDLE state 708, the UEoperates in power saving mode that uses less power than the Sleepingmode for DRx cycles 704 a and 704 b. In an example, the various UEcontext, as described above, may be contained at NR-node to avoidmessage exchanges with the Core network (CN) for re-establishing theradio connection or bearer when transferring from the RRC_IDLE state 708to an active state 702 c (e.g., semi-connected state 702 a). In somecases, while operating at the Active state 702 c, for instance whileoperating at the semi-connected state 702 a of the grant-less mode 702,the UE stays at high power for transmitting or receiving until an ACK orNACK is received, or until a timer expires. When the ACK or NACK isreceived, or the timer expires, the UE may return directly to theRRC_IDLE state 708 directly without going through the DRx cycles as inthe RRC_CONNECTED state 704 c of the Grant state 704, thereby avoidingunnecessary DRx cycles for a sporadic small data transmission, andreducing signaling for improved latency and battery life performance.

In an alternative embodiment, the Grant-less state 702 might not includedata transmission. The Grant-less channel resources in this case may beused to request resource allocation for predefined specific services,such as URLLC services for example. When the UE is granted resources viathe response front a NR-node, the UE may then transfer to thegrant-state 704 (e.g., RRC-CONNECTED 704 c of Grant state 704) beforetransmitting (UL) data for ultra-reliability.

Turning now to fast synchronization for Grant-less UL Transmissions, formMTC devices' small packet transmissions, overhead and delay due tocurrent Random Access Channel (RACH) procedures might be excessive. Toavoid such cost, RACH-less grant-less UL transmission may further reducethe required signaling load in both DL and UL for simultaneously activeUEs accessing the radio network. For URLLC devices, it recognized hereinthat it is desirable to be able to initiate UL transmission whenever anurgent UL packet occurs at a UE, and therefore RACH-less and grant-lessUL transmissions may reduce the signaling overhead to further accelerateUL data transmission. The RACH-less and grant-less UL accessing schemesdescribed herein, in some cases, reduce the number of required signalingmessages exchanged between the radio access network and a UE, thusproviding the potential to accelerate the data transmission with reducedlatency for URLLC devices, and also to reduce the required energyconsumption for the mMTC devices (e.g., due to shorter radio on time).This may also lead to an increase in the number of UEs that cansimultaneously access the radio network, thereby increasing the systemcapacity.

In some cases, contention-based grant-less access may provide the optionto transmit a UL data packet immediately after DRx, for example, byomitting the Random Access procedures. In LTE, however, ULsynchronization is achieved by Random Access procedures, where an eNodeBestimates the initial Timing Advance from the PRACH sent by the UE. ThePRACH is used as a timing reference for uplink during UE's initialaccess. The eNodeB sends a Timing advance command in a Random AccessResponse (RAR). Once the UE is in connected mode, the eNodeB keepestimating Timing Advance and sends a Timing Advance Command MAC ControlElement to the UE, if correction is required. In examples, as long as aUE sends some uplink data (PUSCH/PUCCH/SRS), the eNodeB can estimate theuplink signal arrival time, which can then be used to calculate therequired Timing Advance value. Using the Broadcast messages sent by aNR-node, in some cases such as grant-less access, a given UE is DLsynchronized but not UL synchronized. It is recognized herein that ULsynchronization is critical in some cases, for example, when a cellcovers a certain distance.

In some examples, to achieve UL Synchronization with respect to aparticular eNB, a UE may be required to send UL frames with a TimingAdvance (TA) to align with the eNB's time frame in an LTE system. But,in some cases, the Timing Advance (TA) is unknown, and tight ULsynchronization among the UEs achieved via the RACH procedure might notbe possible. In some cases, however, a certain level of synchronizationmay still be needed for OFDM based NOMA access schemes. In accordancewith various embodiments, fast synchronization for RACH-less andgrant-less UL transmissions reduce latency for URLLC devices, and reducesignaling for mMTC devices.

Referring generally to FIG. 8, where the DL synchronization signal andDL Reference Signal are illustrated within a grant-less Interval, and inparticular to FIGS. 9A and 9B, where the UL TA is estimated with the DLsynchronization signal and/or the DL Reference Signal, in one example,at 902, a UE powers up. At 904, the UE conducts cell search andsynchronization after powering up. At 906, the UE may connect with a RANto register to the RAN. At 908, the UE is in the grant state (e.g.,grant state 704), and the UE may send and receive grant-based UL and DLmessages, respectively, over the network. On 910, the UE determines, oris instructed by the radio network, whether it has UL data that shouldbe sent using the grant-less mode, for instance the grant-less mode 702.If it does, at 912, the UE sets up or updates its grant-less operations.At 915, the UE enters into the grant-less inactive state, which may alsobe referred to as the semi-connected state 702 a. The UE may remain atthe Grant-less Inactive State while sleeping, for example, until itreceives a notice that new UL data is ready for transmission. Then theUE may switch from the Grant-less Inactive state to the Grant-lessActive State, at 918, using fast synchronization with a grant-less DLSynchronization Signal, as also shown in FIG. 8, for DL synchronizationto decode the DL control message, and for UL synchronization forfrequency subcarrier and the time self-contained Interval (A′, B′, X′)boundaries.

With respect to fast synchronization in the uplink, various scenariosare considered for purposes of example. In one example scenario(Scenario 1 in FIG. 9B) the UE has only achieved DL synchronization viathe DL reference signal or control pilot, but has never acquired ULsynchronization via a UL random access operation. For example, the UEmay select/reselect a new cell or Transmission and Reception Point (TRP)under the current serving cell, and may already have a valid storedgrant-less UL transmission configuration through previously visitedcells or through pre-authorization for accessing, which may refer to apre-configuration by factory or operator provisioning, DM-OTAconfiguration by service administrator, etc. In this scenario, the newcell or TRP may already have the UE context (e.g. the previous servingcell or TRP forwarded the UE context to the new target cell in theforward handover procedure), and the UE may be in the Grant-lessInactive state and initiate grant-less UL transmission without RACHprocedures.

In another example scenario (Scenario 2 in FIG. 9B), in addition to DLsynchronization, the UE also has acquired UL synchronization initially.For example, the UE may have executed a UL random access operation aspart of an initial RRC connection procedure in the new cell, and alsoacquired UL synchronization in the cell before transitioning into thegrant-less Inactive state.

Referring also to FIG. 11, the UL TA estimation may be conducted withthe different schemes for scenario 1 and 2 illustrated in FIG. 10B. Inone example, with respect to scenario 1, the UE never obtained ULsynchronization in the new cell/TRP prior to the grant-less ULtransmission. The UE may use various mechanisms, in accordance withvarious embodiments, to achieve fast UL synchronization with theestimated TA. In an example, the UL TA may be estimated fromcell(s)/TRP(s) in which the UE has previously visited. For example, theUE may evaluate the most recent UL TA(s) and the related distance fromthe cell/TRP obtained previously by the UE from visited neighborcell(s)/TRP(s), or from visited cell/TRP as a subset of cells/TRPsconfigured for the purpose of a timing advance reference. These timingadvance references may be referred to as a Grant-less TA Cell Group. Atime difference between the current serving cell and the neighboringcells' UL TA may be stored on the UE. For example:

UL_TA_estimated=UL_TA_visited+delay_visited_to_serving+adjustment(distance difference)

In an example, the UE may estimate DL propagation delay using a DLsynchronization pilot or reference signal, as shown in FIG. 10, and theDL Time Stamp from the NR-node carried on DCI or a DL message headerfrom the MAC layer or higher layer. For example:

DL_delay=DL sync pilot or reference signal arrival time at UE-DL timestamp from NR-node,

UL_TA_estimated=2×DL_delay

Thus, the UE may estimate DL propagation delay using DL path loss. Insome cases, assuming free space path loss, the UE may estimate the DLpropagation delay by estimating the path loss if the UE knows the DLgrant-less synchronization transmit (Tx) power at the NR Cell/TRP(network node). The UE may be configured with the Tx Power of the DLgrant-less synchronization at the network node. In an example, the UEknows the received power of the DL synchronization reference signalthrough its own measurement of the DL synchronization reference signal.Furthermore, the UE may refine further the estimate of the DLpropagation delay with deployment specific configuration parameters totake into account a deployment specific path loss model. For example,the NR Node (e.g., eNB) may configure the UE with a path loss offset.The UE may apply this offset to the free space path loss to take intoaccount deviation between free space path loss and the actual deploymentspecific path loss model.

In example Scenario 2 depicted in FIG. 9B, in addition to DLsynchronization, a UE also acquires UL synchronization with the servingcell/TRP before transitioning to the Grant-less Inactive state. The UEmay have received an initial TA or multiple updated TA values from theserving cell/TRP before it transitions into the Grant-less Inactivestate. In one embodiment, the UE estimates the DL propagation delay,DL_delay, using the method described above with respect to scenario 1.For example, the UE may estimate the DL propagation delay during theRACH procedure, or by using the time stamp or location context storedfrom a previous TA update operation. The UE may then computes the UL TAcorrection, UL_TA_correct, with the UL TA from previous RACH or the TAupdate operation, UL_TA_ref as follows, for example:

UL_TA_correct=UL_TA_ref−2×DL_delay

The UE may estimate new UL TA (UL_TA_new) with the DL delay(DL_delay_current) estimated at the current location, and the UL TAcorrection (UL_TA_correct) estimated as described above, for example:

UL_TA_new=2×DL_delay_current+UL_TA_correct

In some cases, the estimation of the DL propagation delay and thecomputation of the UL TA correction may be repeated each time the UEperforms a random access procedure or receives a UL TA update. The UL TAupdate may be received from MAC CE or from DL DCI after UL transmissionsin the Grant state.

In some cases, the UE may be triggered to determine the TA or update theTA stored on the UE. For example, and without limitation, a need totransmit grant-less data may trigger the TA to be determined or updated,a reception of a grant-less DL synchronization signal may trigger the TAto be determined or updated, or the execution of a random accessprocedure in the Grant state may trigger the TA to be determined orupdated. In another example, the UE may receive an updated TA from theNR-node after the transmits UL data in the Grant State. In anotherexample, an update to the propagation delay correction factor delta ismade as result of the execution of a random access procedure (e.g.,Scenario 2 in FIG. 9B), which may trigger the TA to be determined orupdated. In yet another example, the UE is configured with a TA timer,and when the TA timer expires, the TA is triggered to be updated, suchthat the TA is updated periodically.

Turning now to Transmit Power (TP) Management for Grant-less ULTransmission, the contention based grant-less UL transmissions withinfrequent small data are infrequent UL bursts, which may prohibit theconventional closed loop Transmit Power Control (TPC) for continuouscommunications. It is recognized herein, however that transmit powercontrol for grant-less UL transmissions may still critical for, amongother functionality, ensuring proper signal strength at the NR-nodereceiver to meet the reliability performance requirement for URLLCdevices, and for limiting interference to other UEs in a multi-useraccessing scenario to enable the required system capacity for mMTCdevices.

In an example embodiment, referring to FIGS. 11A and 11B, the NR-node'sTP level associated with the downlink synchronization signals orreference signals is indicated to a UE on the DL Control Information(DCI) element (e.g., the DCIs for grant-less UL may contain DL TPinformation used for the DL synchronization or reference signal). The UEmay calculate the DL path loss with the measured synchronization orreference signal power and the related TP carried on the DCI. In oneexample:

DL path loss=DL TP−Signal strength at UE Rx

The UE may calculate the UL path loss based on the DL path loss. In oneexample:

UL path loss=DL path loss

In some examples, a power adjustment may be based on the UE's history ofpath loss and/or TP levels (e.g., weighted or unweighted moving averagedpower level). The power adjustment may further be based on the relatedUE context such as, for example, location, mobility, etc. The poweradjustment may also be based on UL resources and a related Modulationand Coding Scheme (MCS). In one example:

UL power level=min. {UL path loss+adjustment (UL TP1, UL TP2, . . . ,total UL resources and MSC), max. Tx power}

In some cases, if there is no DL signal to measure prior to thegrant-less UL transmission, for example, then the UE's grant-less UL TPlevel may be estimated based on the history of grant-less UL transmitpower levels. The NR-node may include the measured grant-less UL pathloss or TP adjustment on its DL ACK or any other DL feedback message tothe received grant-less UL message. This may be used by the UE tocalculate the next grant-less UL transmit power level, such that aquasi-closed loop power control is defined. In one example:

UL power level=min. {UL path loss+adjustment (previously measured ULpath loss or TP adjustment, total UL resources and MSC), max. Tx Power}

Referring now to FIGS. 12A to 13B, an example system 2500 is shown whichincludes an mMTC UE 2502, an NR-node 2504, and a core network (CN) 2506.The NR-node 2504 comprises a RAN slice management function or apparatus(node) 2508 and an mMTC slice 2510. The CN 2506 includes a CN SliceManagement function or apparatus (node) 2512 and an mMTC slice 2514. ThemMTC 2514 may include a mobility management node or apparatus 2516,gateways 2518 (e.g., SWG, PGW) and a subscription management function orapparatus (node) 2520 (e.g., HSS). It will be appreciated that theexample system 2500 is simplified to facilitate description of thedisclosed subject matter and is not intended to limit the scope of thisdisclosure. Other devices, systems, and configurations may be used toimplement the embodiments disclosed herein in addition to, or insteadof, a system such as the system illustrated in FIGS. 12A to 13B, and allsuch embodiments are contemplated as within the scope of the presentdisclosure.

Referring in particular to FIG. 12A, at 1, in accordance with theillustrated example, the UE 2502 after power up. After powering, the UE2502 may conduct cell search and synchronization, and then the UE mayacquire system information, for example, from MIB and SIBs. At 2, the UE2502 sends a Radio Connection Request to the NR-node 2504. Inparticular, the UE may send Radio Connection Request message to the RANslicing management apparatus 2508 (at 2A) or the mMTC slice 2510 (at2B). The request may be a request for access to a UE selected RAN slice2510 at the NR-node 2504. The request may include various contextinformation associated with the UE 2502. The context information mayinclude, for example and without limitation, a device type (e.g., mMTC,URLLC) of the UE 2502, a service associated with the UE 2502 (e.g.,forest fire monitoring or traffic monitoring), a latency requirement(e.g., 100 ms or ultra-low latency of 0.5 ms, data traffic context(e.g., data packet size or data rate), a traffic type (e.g., non-IP orIP based); mobility context associated with the UE 2502 (e.g., static,pedestrian, vehicular), a planned schedule of data transmissions fromthe UE 2502, type of access that can be performed by the UE 2502 (e.g.,grant access, grant-less access, or access that switches between grantand grant-less). In some cases, operations 3, 4, and 5 are not performedwhen the UE selects the slice 2510.

In some cases, for example when the UE 2502 does not select a slice, theRAN Slicing Management 2508, at 3A, selects the slice 2510 as the UE'sradio accessing slice, for example, based on the UE context in therequest at 2A. The selection may further be based on RAN traffic loadingand resource allocations. At 4A, in accordance with the illustratedexample, the RAN Slicing Management 2508 sends a RAN Slice ConnectionRequest to the mMTC Slice 2510 that was selected. The request may alsoforward all or some of the UE's context from 2A, so that a radioconnection can be established between the UE 2502 and the mMTC slice2510. At 5A, the mMTC Slice 510 may send a RAN Slice Connection Responseto the RAN Slicing Management 2508. The response may indicate whetherthe slice connection request has been accepted. If the request isrejected, the one or more reasons for the rejection may be included inthe response message.

At 6, in accordance with the illustrated example, the RAN SlicingManagement 2508 (at 6A) or the mMTRC Slice 2510 (at 6B) sends a RANSlice Connection Response to the UE 2502. In this message, the RAN SliceManagement 2508 or the RAN mMTC Slice 2510 may confirm whether the radioconnection request has been accepted. If the request is rejected, one ormore reasons for the rejection may also be included in the responsemessage. In the illustrated example, the UE 2502 receives a confirmationthat a successful radio connection with the mMTC Slice 2510 has beenestablished. At 7, the UE may send a registration request to the RANSlicing Management 2508 (at 7A) or the RAN mMTC Slice 2510 (at 7B). Theregistration request may be sent to establish a secured serviceconnection with the Core Network (CN) 2506.

Referring now to FIG. 12B, at 8, the registration request is sent to CNSlicing Management apparatus 2512 (8C and 8C′) or the CN mMTC slice 2514(8D and 8D′). The request may be sent by the RAN Slicing Management 2508(8C and 8D) or the mMTC Sliced 2510 (8C′ and 8D′). The request mayinclude the context information associated with the UE, informationassociated with the mMTC slice 2510, such as the slice ID for example.In some cases, operations 9 and 10, which are now described, are skippedwhen the NR-node 2504 selects the CN slice 2514. At 9C, in accordancewith the illustrated example, the CN Slicing Management apparatus 2512selects the mMTC IP traffic slice 2514, for example, based on the UEcontext, the RAN mMTC Slice 2510, traffic loading of the CN 2506,available mMTC slices, or the like. At 10C, in accordance with theillustrated example, the CN Slicing Management node 2512 sends aregistration request to the Mobility Management node 2516. TheRegistration Request may include the UE's context information andinformation associated with the RAN mMTC Slice 2510.

Referring now to FIG. 13A, continuing with the illustrated example, at11, the Mobility Management node 2516 exchanges messages with theSubscription Management node 2520, so as to authenticate the UE 2502 foraccess to services. After the authentication, at 12, the MobilityManagement node 2516 exchanges messages with the UE 2502, such that theUE 2502 and the Mobility Management node 2516 mutual authenticate eachother, and then establish a Secured Mode between them. At 13, inaccordance with the illustrated example, the Mobility Management node2516 may exchange messages with the Subscription Management node 2520,so that a location of the UE 2502 is updated. Location Update: MobilityManagement exchanges messages with the Subscription Management forLocation Update. At 14, an IP session may be established between the RANmMTC slice 2510 and the CN mMTC slice 2514. The IP session may also beestablished within the CN mMTC slice 2514.

With continuing reference to FIG. 13A, in accordance with theillustrated example, at 15, grant-less operations are setup. The NR-node2504, in particular the -RAN mMTC Slice 2510, may exchange messages withthe UE 2502 to configure the Grant-less operation parameters describedherein, for example. Example parameters include, without limitation:contention access allocation parameters; grant-less configurationparameters (e.g., DACTI, CTI, DCA, UAP, GLUCI, etc.); seed or index ofthe orthogonal code for code-domain multiple accessing; seed or value ofthe random back-off for priority collision avoidance contention access;redundancy parameters for reliable transmissions; timers at the Inactivestate (e.g., for listening to a broadcasting channel for pages or forsystem information changes, for conducting measurements for the radiolink management, for updating statuses related to reachability andmobility, etc.); grant-less power control values (e.g., minimum andmaximum UL transmission power levels and incremental adjustments, whichmay be calculated by the NR-node 2504 based, at least in part, the pathloss and required received signal quality during the message exchangesdescribed above between the UE 2502 and the NR-node 2504); parametersrelated to a schedule for grant-less UL transmissions; a coding rate;modulation scheme, etc.

At 16A, in accordance with the illustrated example, the UE 2502 confirmsthe grant-less configuration (allocation) with a higher layer of the UE2502 as compared to the physical layer. Alternatively, or additionally,the UE 2502 may confirm the Grant-less setup with the NR-node 2504, inparticular the RAN Slicing Management node 2508 (at 16B) or the mMTCslice 2510 (at 16C). Accordingly, the UE 2502 may receive an entering“Grant-less” operation mode command from the higher layer or from theNR-node 2504. At 17, the UE 2502 enters into an inactive state of theGrant-less operation mode. The inactive state may be preconfigured. Insome cases, the inactive state may be triggered by the higher layer orthe NR-node's command to operate in Grant-less mode after registration.In some cases, the UE 2502 may automatically enter the inactive state inGrant-less operation mode if configured to do so. At 18, in accordancewith the illustrated example, the UE 2502 receives data from the higherlayer that it needs to transmit in an UL transmission. Example dataincludes, without limitation, “keep alive” small data, measurement data,data associated with a reachability and mobility status of the UE 2502,or the like. At 19, the UE 2502 may need to check system information ona broadcast channel. By way of further examples, at 19, the UE 2502 mayneed to conduct a radio link measurement, or select a new cell based onsystem information or results of the radio link measurement. At 20, inaccordance with the illustrated example, the UE 2502 synchronizes withreference signals or an available synchronization pilot, for instancethe first available synchronization pilot, at the symbol timing boundaryfor allocating a contention access area.

At 21, in accordance with the illustrated example, the UE 2502 sends agrant-less UL transmission to the NR-node 2504, in particular the RANmMTC slice 2510. In some cases, the UE 2502 may conduct contentionaccess for the grant-less UL transmission (without redundant versions)at the initial UL transmitting power, which may defined at theGrant-less setup stage (at 15) or signaled by the NR-node 2504 viaSystem Information broadcasting or RRC signaling. In some cases, the UE2502 may indicate if an acknowledgement (ACK) is required for thistransmission at the transmitting power level. The UE 2502 may alsoinclude radio link measurements, a reachability or mobility status, orother information with the UL data transmission at 21. At 22, the UE2502 may wait for an ACK response, to its UL transmission, from the mMTCslice 2510. The UE 2502 may wait until an ACK timer expires if, forexample, an ACK is required. At 23, in accordance with an example, theUE 2502 conducts a retransmission of the UL message. The UE 2502 mayconduct contention access again, for example, if reliable transmissionis required for its grant-less UL data. At 24, in accordance with theillustrated example, the NR-node 2504, in particular the mMTC slice2510, sends an ACK message to the UE 2502 that indicates that the ULtransmission from the UE 2502 was successfully received. The message at24 may also include a power adjustment value for the UE's nextgrant-less UL transmission, thereby providing quasi-closed-loop PowerControl. At 25, the UE 2502 may enter an inactive state of grant-lessoperation mode. The inactive state generally refers to a state in whichthe UE is not transmitting. The inactive state may be preconfigured ortriggered by the higher layer's command after a grant-less ULtransmission. The inactive state may also be triggered when the UE 2502or receives an ACK from the NR-node 2502, for example, when an ACK isrequired for the transmission. In some cases, the UE 2502 mayautomatically enter the inactive state after a grant-less ULtransmission, if, for example, the UE 2502 is configured to do so.

Referring also to FIGS. 14A to 15B, an example of grant-less ULtransmission for URLLC devices is illustrated. An example system 2700 isshown which includes an URLLC UE 2702, an NR-node 2704, and a corenetwork (CN) 2706. The NR-node 2704 comprises a RAN slice managementfunction or apparatus (node) 2708 and a RAN URLLC slice 2710. The CN2706 includes a CN Slice Management function or apparatus (node) 2712and an URLLC slice 2714. The URLLC slice 2714 may include a mobilitymanagement node or apparatus 2716, one or more gateways 2718 (e.g., SWG,PGW) and a subscription management function or apparatus (node) 2720(e.g., HSS). It will be appreciated that the example system 2700 issimplified to facilitate description of the disclosed subject matter andis not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. Other devices,systems, and configurations may be used to implement the embodimentsdisclosed herein in addition to, or instead of, a system such as thesystem illustrated in FIGS. 14A to 15B, and all such embodiments arecontemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure.

The example embodiment for URLLC devices illustrated in FIGS. 14A to 15Bmay be similar to the example embodiment for mMTC devices describedabove, and therefore similar operations are described with reference toFIGS. 12A to 13B. With respect to URLLC devices, however, that thecontext information associated with the UE 2702 may include a value thatindicates that the UE 2702 can switch between grant and grant-lessoperations. Further, an eMBB/URLLC slice may be selected at the NR-node2704 in order to optimize the overall system resource utilization. In anexample, the URLLC slice 2714 is selected to meet short latencyrequirements across the system (core network 2706) 2700. In someexamples, the UE 2702 conducts its grant-less UL transmission withredundancies. For example, the UE 2702 may send multiple transmissionsat the same or different grant-less contention spaces with the same ordifferent redundancy schemes on multiple contention blocks. In oneexample, at 24, the UE 2702 switches from a grant-less operation mode toa grant operation mode after receiving a command from the higher layer.By way of example, the UE 2702 may include a traffic monitor thatswitches from a grant-less mode to a grant operation mode to upload theimages of a traffic accident to the network.

Referring now to FIGS. 16A to 17B, the example system 2500 is shown. Inthe illustrated example, grant-less UL operations are performed for themMTC device 2502. In accordance with the illustrated example, the RANSlicing Management node 2508 and the CN Slicing Management node 2512 maybe logical entities that perform common control functions in the RAN andthe CN 2506, respectively. For example, the RAN Slicing Management node2508 and the CN Slicing Management node 2512 may exchange servicesubscription and policy information, which may be used to validate arequest for access to a slice. Such information may also be used toestablish security settings, power charging parameters, or the like. TheRAN Slicing Management node 2508 and the CN Slicing Management node 2512may also exchange context information associated with the UE 2502. Suchcontext information may include, for example, mobility information,location information, transmission schedule information, data trafficinformation, etc. The context information may allow the appropriate, forinstance optimal, slice to be selected in the RAN and the CN 2506.

The Mobility Management node 2516 and the Subscription Management node2520 may represent common functions for the CN slices (slice common)associated with a service provider. In some cases, the MobilityManagement node 2516 and the Subscription Management node may be part ofthe CN Slicing Management 2506, or may represent specific functionsinside the CN slice 2514 provided by a specific service provider (slicespecific), as shown.

Referring in particular to FIGS. 16A and 16B, at 1, in accordance withthe illustrated example, the UE 2502 powers up. After power up, the UE2502 may conduct cell/TRP/slice search and synchronization. The UE 2502may further acquire system information from MIB and SIBs. At this time,in some cases, the UE 2502 may be in similar states as EMM-deregistered,ECM-Idle, and RRC-Idle, as defined in the current LTE system. At 2, theUE 2502 may send a Radio Connection Request to the RAN SlicingManagement node 2508 (at 2A) or the mMTC Slice 2510 (at 2B). The requestmay include various context information associated with the UE 2502,such as, for example and without limitation: a device type (e.g., mMTCor URLLC), a service (e.g., service for forest fire monitoring ortraffic monitoring); a latency requirement (e.g., 100 ms or ultra-lowlatency 0.5 ms); context related to data traffic (e.g., data packet sizeand/or data rate and/or duty cycle); CN traffic type (e.g., non-IP or IPbased); mobility context (e.g., static, pedestrian, or vehicular, or lowspeed in a confined area, etc.); location context (e.g., UE trackingarea at RAN); schedule context (e.g., schedule of data transmissions);access context (e.g., grant or grant-less accessing, whether switchablebetween grant and grant-less, accessing priority, etc.). In some cases,operations 4 and 5 are not performed, for example, when the UE 2502selects the RAN slice 2510.

At 3A, the RAN Slicing Management node 2508 may select the RAN slice2510. The selection may be based, at least in part, on the contextinformation associated with the UE 2502, traffic loading and resourceallocations at various RAN slices, a relevant service profile orsubscription, a charging policy, or the like. Information may be storedat the NR-node 2504, or received from the CN 2506 via the CN slicingManagement node 2512 and/or the Subscription Management entity 2520 onthe CN 2506. At 3A, the RAN Slicing Management 2508 selects the mMTCslice 2510 as the radio accessing slice for the UE 2510. At 3B, the RANslice 3510 may determine to accept the UE's connection request for theRAN-selected or UE-selected RAN slice 3510. At 4A, the RAN SlicingManagement 2508 may send a RAN slice connection request to the mMTCSlice 2510. The connection request may include the context informationassociated with the UE 2502, so that a radio connection can beestablished between the UE 2502 and the slice 2510. At 5A, in accordancewith the illustrated example, the mMTC Slice 2510 sends a RAN SliceConnection Response to the RAN Slicing Management 2508. The response mayindicate whether the slice connection request has been accepted. If therequest is rejected, the reasons for rejection may be included in theresponse message. If the request is accepted if accepted, radioconfiguration parameters (e.g., SRB1-like and/or DBR-like dedicatedradio resource configuration for the UE 2502) for the selected RAN slice2510 may be included in the response.

Still referring to FIGS. 16A and 16B, at 6, in accordance with theillustrated examples, the RAN Slicing Management 2508 (at 6A) or themMTC Slice 2510 (at 6B) sends a Radio Connection Response to the UE2502. The response may indicate that radio connection is confirmed bythe RAN Slice Management 2508 or the RAN mMTC Slice 2510. If the requestfor the selected RAN slice 2510 is rejected, the reasons for rejectionmay also be included in the response message. If the request isaccepted, the radio configuration parameters (e.g., SRB1-like and/orDRB-like dedicated resource configuration for the UE 2502) for theselected RAN slice 2510 may be included in the response. In some cases,the RAN Slicing Management 2508 or the selected RAN slice 2510 may send(e.g., within the response message) an SBR1 and/or DRB resource (e.g.,SRB and/or DRB configuration) that is dedicated to the UE 2502. Thus,the UE 2502 may be confirmed as having a successful radio connectionwith the mMTC Slice 2510, which may be a NAS connection with theselected RAN slice 2510. At 7, in accordance with the illustratedexamples, the UE 2502 may send a registration request to the RAN SlicingManagement 2508 (at 7A) or the RAN mMTC Slice 2510 (at 7B). Theregistration request may sent at the NAS layer, and may be encapsulatedin the Radio Connect Complete message, which may also include the radioconfiguration as instructed by the selected RAN slice 251. The RANSlicing Management 2508 may send the registration request to the CNSlicing Management 2512 (at 8A) or the Mobility Management 2516 (at 8D).Alternatively, the RAN mMTC Slice 2510 may send the registration requestto the Mobility Management 2516 (at 8D′). The registration request maybe sent to the Mobility Management 2516 when the slice 2512 is selectedby the NR-node 2510. In some examples, the registration request may besent to the CN Slicing Management 2512 when the RAN slice 2510 isselected by the UE 2502 (at 8B). The registration request may includecontext information associated with the UE, and slice information (e.g.,an ID) associated with the mMTC slice 2510.

In some examples, the NR-node 2504 or the CN 2506 may select the CNslice 2514 based on various context information associated with the UE2502. For example, CN slice selection may be based, at least in part, onan ID of the UE assigned by the RAN-Slicing Management 2508 or the RANslice 2510 in the NR-node 2508, the type of the UE 2502 (e.g., mMTC orURLLC), a service performed by the UE 2502 (e.g., forest fire monitoringor traffic monitoring), a latency requirement (e.g., long latency 100 msor ultra-low latency 0.5 ms for the session or flow end-to-end delay);data traffic (e.g., data bit rate and/or traffic load for the session orflow); a route type (e.g., non-IP or IP based), mobility (e.g., static,pedestrian, or vehicular, or low speed in a confined area); a location(e.g., UE's tracking and/or routing area in the network, such as TAI andECGI in LTE system); schedule (e.g, schedule of UL data transmissions);charge (e.g., on-line or off-line charging), etc.

In some cases, for example, when the NR-node 2504 selects the CN slide2514, operations 9 and 10 are not performed. In other cases, at 9C, theCN Slice Management 2512 selects an mMTC IP traffic slice (slice 2514)based on at least a portion of the context information associated withthe UE, the RAN mMTC Slice 2510, CN traffic loading, or available mMTCslices, etc. At 10C, the CN Slicing Management 2506 may send aregistration request to the Mobility Management node 2616. Theregistration request may include context information associated with theUE 2502 and information related to the RAN mMTC slice 2510. At 10C, insome cases, the connection between the NAS layers of the UE 2502 and theMobility Management 2516 or the CN slice 2514 is established. Then, theUE may transit to various states, like EMM-Registered, ECM-Connected andRRC-Connected state in LTE system.

Referring now to FIG. 17A, at 11, in accordance with the illustratedexample, the Mobility Management 2516 exchanges messages with theSubscription Management 2520 for authenticating the UE 2502 with therequested services. The exchanged messages may include, for example andwithout limitation, UE IDs (such as IMSI and Serving Network ID) andcontext, RAN slice and CN slice info (such as RAN slice ID and CN sliceID), service network ID, UE service profile or subscription and chargingpolicy, an assigned UE default IP address, etc. The Security keys may begenerated for establishing a secured connection in the CN 2506 and RAN.At 12, the Mobility Management node 2516 and the UE 2502, after theauthentication with the Subscription Management 2520, may exchangesmessages to mutual authenticate each other, and then to establish aSecured Mode for NAS signaling between them. At 23, in accordance withthe illustrated example, the Mobility Management 2516 and theSubscription Management 2520 exchange messages to update a locationassociated with the UE 2502. At 14, in accordance with the illustratedexample, an IP or non-IP session is established within the CN mMTC slice2514 on the radio bearer between the UE 2502 and the Mobility Management2516 in the CN 2506, over the interface between the RAN mMTC slice 2510and the CN mMTC Slice 2514 and the network connection bearer in the corenetwork 2506.

At 15, grant-less operations are setup. The NR-node 2504, in particularthe -RAN mMTC Slice 2510, may exchange messages with the UE 2502 toconfigure the Grant-less operation parameters described herein, forexample. Example parameters include, without limitation: contentionaccess allocation parameters; accessing priority and/or contentionpriority; grant-less configuration parameters (e.g., DACTI, CTI, DCA,UAP, GLUCI, etc.); seed or index of the orthogonal code for code-domainmultiple accessing; seed or value of the random back-off for prioritycollision avoidance contention access; redundancy parameters forreliable transmissions; timers at the Inactive state (e.g., forlistening to a broadcasting channel for pages or for system informationchanges, for conducting measurements for the radio link management, forupdating statuses related to reachability and mobility, etc.);grant-less power control values (e.g., minimum and maximum ULtransmission power levels and incremental adjustments, which may becalculated by the NR-node 2504 based, at least in part, the path lossand required received signal quality during the message exchangesdescribed above between the UE 2502 and the NR-node 2504); parametersrelated to a schedule for grant-less UL transmissions; a coding rate;modulation scheme, etc. At 16A, in accordance with the illustratedexample, the UE 2502 confirms the grant-less configuration (allocation)with a higher layer of the UE 2502 as compared to the physical layer.Alternatively, or additionally, the UE 2502 may confirm the Grant-lesssetup with the NR-node 2504, in particular the RAN Slicing Managementnode 2508 (at 16B) or the mMTC slice 2510 (at 16C). Accordingly, the UE2502 may receive an entering “Grant-less” operation mode command fromthe higher layer or from the NR-node 2504.

Referring now to FIG. 17B, at 17, the UE 2502 enters into an inactivestate of the Grant-less operation mode. The inactive state may bepreconfigured. In some cases, the inactive state may be triggered by thehigher layer or the NR-node's command to operate in Grant-less modeafter registration. In some cases, the UE 2502 may automatically enterthe inactive state in Grant-less operation mode if configured to do so.At 18, in accordance with the illustrated example, the UE 2502 receivesdata from the higher layer that it needs to transmit in an ULtransmission. Example data includes, without limitation, “keep alive”small data, measurement data, data associated with a reachability andmobility status of the UE 2502, or the like. At 19, the UE 2502 may needto check system information on a broadcast channel. By way of furtherexamples, at 19, the UE 2502 may need to conduct a radio linkmeasurement, or select a new cell based on system information or resultsof the radio link measurement. At 20, in accordance with the illustratedexample, the UE 2502 synchronizes with reference signals or an availablesynchronization pilot, for instance the first available synchronizationpilot, at the symbol timing boundary for allocating a contention accessarea. The UE 2502 may also estimate the Time Advance (TA) for grant-lessUL synchronization, at 20. Further, the UE 2502 may estimate theTransmit Power (TP) level, using the received DL reference signal, forthe UL transmission.

At 21, in accordance with the illustrated example, the UE 2502 sends agrant-less UL transmission to the NR-node 2504, in particular the RANmMTC slice 2510. In some cases, the UE 2502 may conduct contentionaccess for the grant-less UL transmission (without redundant versions)at the initial UL transmitting power, which may defined at theGrant-less setup stage (at 15) or signaled by the NR-node 2504 viaSystem Information broadcasting or RRC signaling. In some cases, the UE2502 may indicate if an acknowledgement (ACK) is required for thistransmission at the transmitting power level. The UE 2502 may alsoinclude radio link measurements, a reachability or mobility status, orother information with the UL data transmission at 21. At 22, the UE2502 may wait for an ACK response, to its UL transmission, from the mMTCslice 2510. The UE 2502 may wait until an ACK timer expires if, forexample, an ACK is required. At 23, in accordance with an example, theUE 2502 conducts a retransmission of the UL message with an adjusted(e.g., increased) TP level if reliable transmission is required. The UE2502 may conduct contention access again, for example, if reliabletransmission is required for its grant-less UL data. At 24, inaccordance with the illustrated example, the NR-node 2504, in particularthe mMTC slice 2510, sends an ACK message to the UE 2502 that indicatesthat the UL transmission from the UE 2502 was successfully received. Themessage at 24 may also include

a power adjustment value for the UE's next grant-less UL transmission,thereby providing quasi-closed-loop Power Control. At 25, the UE 2502may enter an inactive state of grant-less operation mode. The inactivestate generally refers to a state in which the UE is not transmitting.The inactive state may be preconfigured or triggered by the higherlayer's command after a grant-less UL transmission. The inactive statemay also be triggered when the UE 2502 or receives an ACK from theNR-node 2502, for example, when an ACK is required for the transmission.In some cases, the UE 2502 may automatically enter the inactive stateafter a grant-less UL transmission, if, for example, the UE 2502 isconfigured to do so.

Referring also to FIGS. 18A to 19B, an example embodiment for URLLCdevices is illustrated in which may be similar to the example embodimentfor mMTC devices described above, and therefore similar operations aredescribed with reference to FIGS. 16A to 17B. With respect to URLLCdevices, however, the context information associated with the UE 2702may include a value that indicates that the UE 2702 can switch betweengrant and grant-less operations. Further, at 3A or 2B, an eMBB/URLLCslice 2710 may be selected at the NR-node 2704 in order to optimize theoverall system resource utilization. In an example, at 9C or 8D, theURLLC slice 2714 is selected to meet short latency requirements acrossthe system (network) 2700. In some examples, the UE 2702 conducts itsgrant-less UL transmission with redundancies, for example, by usingmultiple contention blocks for sending the same data. In one example, at24, the UE 2702 switches from a grant-less operation mode to a grantoperation mode after receiving a command from the higher layer. By wayof example, the UE 2702 may include a traffic monitor that switches froma grant-less mode to a grant operation mode to upload the images of atraffic accident to the network.

Turning now to example Grant-less and Grant UL Transmissions, as shownin FIGS. 20A and 20B, a UE may be preconfigured with a registration to asubscription management node in the core network. Alternatively, the UEmay be registered via “attach” procedures where the UE may be assignedwith a radio temporary identity (ID) that is used in grant-less access.The UE may set up grant-less related parameters, which may be referredto generally as its grant-less configuration, after the registration (ifapplicable). In some cases, a that is UE pre-configured for registrationmay also be pre-configured with grant-less parameters. FIGS. 21A and 21Bdepict an example of grant-less and grant operations for URLLC devices,wherein the UE (URLLC device) transitions between the grant-less andgrant states in accordance with direction by the NR-node. FIGS. 22A and22B depict an example of grant-less and grant operation for mMTCdevices, wherein the UE (mMTC device) transitions between the grant-lessand grant states as commanded by a higher layer (as compared to thephysical layer).

Referring now to FIG. 23, an example graphical user interface (GUI) 2300for configuring a UE's grant-less operations is depicted. In particular,using the GUI 2300, a user may configure a UE to only transmit UL datausing grant-less operations. Alternatively, using the GUI 2300, a usermay enable a UE to switch between grant and grant-less operations, suchthat the UE can operate in duel states. It will be understood that theGUI can be adapted to display or configure additional, or alternative,parameters as desired. Further, the GUI can display parameters invarious visual depictions as desired.

Thus, as described above, an apparatus may transmit a message uplink inthe network in accordance with a grant-less access mode, such that theapparatus transmits the message without being granted access to transmitthe message, so as to operate within the grant-less mode. Further, theapparatus may transition between the grant-less mode and a grant mode.In an example, the apparatus transitions between the grant-less mode andthe grant mode in response to direction from a higher layer than aphysical layer of the apparatus. In another example, the apparatustransitions between the grant-less mode and the grant mode in responseto direction from the network. The apparatus may switch from thegrant-less mode to the grant mode in response to an increase offrequency or volume of data communication performed by the apparatus.The apparatus may switch from the grant mode to the grant-less mode inresponse to a low duty cycle associated with the apparatus. Whileoperating in the grant-less mode, the apparatus may obtain an allocationof radio resources that are shared with at least one other apparatus, soas to operate in a semi-connected state within the grant-less mode. Inan example, a radio access node maintains communication with a corenetwork while the apparatus operates in the semi-connected state. Inanother example, while operating in the grant-less mode, the apparatusobtains an allocation of radio resources that are dedicated to theapparatus, so as to operate in a connected state within the grant-lessmode.

As also described above, an apparatus, while in a grant state, mayidentify data that should be sent uplink in the network using agrant-less state. In the grant-less state, data is sent without theapparatus being granted access to send the message. In an example, theapparatus may transition from the grant state to the grant-less state.While in the grant-less state, the apparatus may transmit the datawithout the apparatus performing random access procedures. In somecases, the data is transmitted via a first cell in accordance with astored uplink transmission configuration that was obtained via anotheror second cell. The apparatus may estimate a timing advance, andtransmit the data in accordance with the timing advance. The apparatusmay store the estimated timing advance. The apparatus may update thestored timing advance in response to receiving a grant-less DLsynchronization signal or in response to a need to transmit data in thegrant-less state. In another example, the apparatus updates the timingadvance when a timer expires, such that the timing advance is updatedperiodically. The apparatus may also estimate transmit power, andtransmit the data in accordance with the estimated transmit power. Theapparatus may store the estimated transmit power. The apparatus mayupdate the stored transmit power in response to a need to transmit datain the grant-less state, in response to receiving a grant-less downlink(DL) synchronization signal, or in response to receiving a grant-lessdownlink (DL) reference signal.

The various techniques described herein may be implemented in connectionwith hardware, firmware, software or, where appropriate, combinationsthereof. Such hardware, firmware, and software may reside in apparatuseslocated at various nodes of a communication network. The apparatuses mayoperate singly or in combination with each other to affect the methodsdescribed herein. As used herein, the terms “apparatus,” “networkapparatus,” “node,” “entity”, “function,” “device,” and “network node”may be used interchangeably, without limitation unless otherwisespecified.

The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) develops technicalstandards for cellular telecommunications network technologies,including radio access, the core transport network, and servicecapabilities—including work on codecs, security, and quality of service.Recent radio access technology (RAT) standards include WCDMA (commonlyreferred as 3G), LTE (commonly referred as 4G), and LTE-Advancedstandards. 3GPP has begun working on the standardization of nextgeneration cellular technology, called New Radio (NR), which is alsoreferred to as “5G”. 3GPP NR standards development is expected toinclude the definition of next generation radio access technology (newRAT), which is expected to include the provision of new flexible radioaccess below 6 GHz, and the provision of new ultra-mobile broadbandradio access above 6 GHz. The flexible radio access is expected toconsist of a new, non-backwards compatible radio access in new spectrumbelow 6 GHz, and it is expected to include different operating modesthat can be multiplexed together in the same spectrum to address a broadset of 3GPP NR use cases with diverging requirements. The ultra-mobilebroadband is expected to include cmWave and mmWave spectrum that willprovide the opportunity for ultra-mobile broadband access for, e.g.,indoor applications and hotspots. In particular, the ultra-mobilebroadband is expected to share a common design framework with theflexible radio access below 6 GHz, with cmWave and mmWave specificdesign optimizations.

It will be understood that for different RAN architectures, thegrant-less UL control and management described above may be conducted atan NR-node, Transmission and Reception Point (TRP), Remote Radio Head(RRH), or the like, as well as the central controller in RAN or thecontrol function in a RAN slice. Embodiments described herein proposedmay also applicable to TRP, RRH, central controller, and controlfunction in different RAN architectures.

3GPP has identified a variety of use cases that NR is expected tosupport, resulting in a wide variety of user experience requirements fordata rate, latency, and mobility. The use cases include the followinggeneral categories: enhanced mobile broadband (e.g., broadband access indense areas, indoor ultra-high broadband access, broadband access in acrowd, 50+ Mbps everywhere, ultra-low cost broadband access, mobilebroadband in vehicles), critical communications, massive machine typecommunications, network operation (e.g., network slicing, routing,migration and interworking, energy savings), and enhancedvehicle-to-everything (eV2X) communications. Specific service andapplications in these categories include, e.g., monitoring and sensornetworks, device remote controlling, bi-directional remote controlling,personal cloud computing, video streaming, wireless cloud-based office,first responder connectivity, automotive ecall, disaster alerts,real-time gaming, multi-person video calls, autonomous driving,augmented reality, tactile internet, and virtual reality to name a few.All of these use cases and others are contemplated herein.

FIG. 24A illustrates one embodiment of an example communications system100 in which the methods and apparatuses described and claimed hereinmay be embodied. As shown, the example communications system 100 mayinclude wireless transmit/receive units (WTRUs) 102 a, 102 b, 102 c,and/or 102 d (which generally or collectively may be referred to as WTRU102), a radio access network (RAN) 103/104/105/103 b/104 b/105 b, a corenetwork 106/107/109, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 108, theInternet 110, and other networks 112, though it will be appreciated thatthe disclosed embodiments contemplate any number of WTRUs, basestations, networks, and/or network elements. Each of the WTRUs 102 a,102 b, 102 c, 102 d, 102 e may be any type of apparatus or deviceconfigured to operate and/or communicate in a wireless environment.Although each WTRU 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d, 102 e is depicted inFIGS. 24A-24E as a hand-held wireless communications apparatus, it isunderstood that with the wide variety of use cases contemplated for 5Gwireless communications, each WTRU may comprise or be embodied in anytype of apparatus or device configured to transmit and/or receivewireless signals, including, by way of example only, user equipment(UE), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a pager, acellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, alaptop, a tablet, a netbook, a notebook computer, a personal computer, awireless sensor, consumer electronics, a wearable device such as a smartwatch or smart clothing, a medical or eHealth device, a robot,industrial equipment, a drone, a vehicle such as a car, truck, train, orairplane, and the like.

The communications system 100 may also include a base station 114 a anda base station 114 b. Base stations 114 a may be any type of deviceconfigured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 102 a,102 b, 102 c to facilitate access to one or more communication networks,such as the core network 106/107/109, the Internet 110, and/or the othernetworks 112. Base stations 114 b may be any type of device configuredto wiredly and/or wirelessly interface with at least one of the RRHs(Remote Radio Heads) 118 a, 118 b and/or TRPs (Transmission andReception Points) 119 a, 119 b to facilitate access to one or morecommunication networks, such as the core network 106/107/109, theInternet 110, and/or the other networks 112. RRHs 118 a, 118 b may beany type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least oneof the WTRU 102 c, to facilitate access to one or more communicationnetworks, such as the core network 106/107/109, the Internet 110, and/orthe other networks 112. TRPs 119 a, 119 b may be any type of deviceconfigured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRU 102 d,to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as thecore network 106/107/109, the Internet 110, and/or the other networks112. By way of example, the base stations 114 a, 114 b may be a basetransceiver station (BTS), a Node-B, an eNode B, a Home Node B, a HomeeNode B, a site controller, an access point (AP), a wireless router, andthe like. While the base stations 114 a, 114 b are each depicted as asingle element, it will be appreciated that the base stations 114 a, 114b may include any number of interconnected base stations and/or networkelements.

The base station 114 a may be part of the RAN 103/104/105, which mayalso include other base stations and/or network elements (not shown),such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller(RNC), relay nodes, etc. The base station 114 b may be part of the RAN103 b/104 b/105 b, which may also include other base stations and/ornetwork elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), aradio network controller (RNC), relay nodes, etc. The base station 114 amay be configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals within aparticular geographic region, which may be referred to as a cell (notshown). The base station 114 b may be configured to transmit and/orreceive wired and/or wireless signals within a particular geographicregion, which may be referred to as a cell (not shown). The cell mayfurther be divided into cell sectors. For example, the cell associatedwith the base station 114 a may be divided into three sectors. Thus, inan embodiment, the base station 114 a may include three transceivers,e.g., one for each sector of the cell. In an embodiment, the basestation 114 a may employ multiple-input multiple output (MIMO)technology and, therefore, may utilize multiple transceivers for eachsector of the cell.

The base stations 114 a may communicate with one or more of the WTRUs102 a, 102 b, 102 c over an air interface 115/116/117, which may be anysuitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF),microwave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, cmWave,mmWave, etc.). The air interface 115/116/117 may be established usingany suitable radio access technology (RAT).

The base stations 114 b may communicate with one or more of the RRHs 118a, 118 b and/or TRPs 119 a, 119 b over a wired or air interface 115b/116 b/117 b, which may be any suitable wired (e.g., cable, opticalfiber, etc.) or wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF),microwave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, cmWave,mmWave, etc.). The air interface 115 b/116 b/117 b may be establishedusing any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

The RRHs 118 a, 118 b and/or TRPs 119 a, 119 b may communicate with oneor more of the WTRUs 102 c, 102 d over an air interface 115 c/116 c/117c, which may be any suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radiofrequency (RF), microwave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visiblelight, cmWave, mmWave, etc.). The air interface 115 c/116 c/117 c may beestablished using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

More specifically, as noted above, the communications system 100 may bea multiple access system and may employ one or more channel accessschemes, such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, and the like. Forexample, the base station 114 a in the RAN 103/104/105 and the WTRUs 102a, 102 b, 102 c, or RRHs 118 a, 118 b and TRPs 119 a, 119 b in the RAN103 b/104 b/105 b and the WTRUs 102 c, 102 d, may implement a radiotechnology such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), which may establish the air interface115/116/117 or 115 c/116 c/117 c respectively using wideband CDMA(WCDMA). WCDMA may include communication protocols such as High-SpeedPacket Access (HSPA) and/or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may includeHigh-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) and/or High-Speed UplinkPacket Access (HSUPA).

In an embodiment, the base station 114 a in the RAN 103/104/105 and theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, or RRHs 118 a, 118 b and TRPs 119 a, 119 b inthe RAN 103 b/104 b/105 b and the WTRUs 102 c, 102 d, may implement aradio technology such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA),which may establish the air interface 115/116/117 using Long TermEvolution (LTE) and/or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A). In the future, the airinterface 115/116/117 may implement 3GPP NR technology.

In an embodiment, the base station 114 a and the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102c may implement radio technologies such as IEEE 802.16 (e.g., WorldwideInteroperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1×,CDMA2000 EV-DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95(IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Global System for Mobilecommunications (GSM), Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), GSMEDGE (GERAN), and the like.

The base station 114 c in FIG. 24A may be a wireless router, Home NodeB, Home eNode B, or access point, for example, and may utilize anysuitable RAT for facilitating wireless connectivity in a localized area,such as a place of business, a home, a vehicle, a campus, and the like.In an embodiment, the base station 114 c and the WTRUs 102 e mayimplement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.11 to establish a wirelesslocal area network (WLAN). In an embodiment, the base station 114 c andthe WTRUs 102 e may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.15 toestablish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In yet an embodiment,the base station 114 b and the WTRUs 102 c, 102 d may utilize acellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, etc.) toestablish a picocell or femtocell. As shown in FIG. 24A, the basestation 114 b may have a direct connection to the Internet 110. Thus,the base station 114 c may not be required to access the Internet 110via the core network 106/107/109.

The RAN 103/104/105 and/or RAN 103 b/104 b/105 b may be in communicationwith the core network 106/107/109, which may be any type of networkconfigured to provide voice, data, applications, and/or voice overinternet protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of the WTRUs 102 a, 102b, 102 c, 102 d. For example, the core network 106/107/109 may providecall control, billing services, mobile location-based services, pre-paidcalling, Internet connectivity, video distribution, etc., and/or performhigh-level security functions, such as user authentication.

Although not shown in FIG. 24A, it will be appreciated that the RAN103/104/105 and/or RAN 103 b/104 b/105 b and/or the core network106/107/109 may be in direct or indirect communication with other RANsthat employ the same RAT as the RAN 103/104/105 and/or RAN 103 b/104b/105 b or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connectedto the RAN 103/104/105 and/or RAN 103 b/104 b/105 b, which may beutilizing an E-UTRA radio technology, the core network 106/107/109 mayalso be in communication with another RAN (not shown) employing a GSMradio technology.

The core network 106/107/109 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d, 102 e to access the PSTN 108, the Internet110, and/or other networks 112. The PSTN 108 may includecircuit-switched telephone networks that provide plain old telephoneservice (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system ofinterconnected computer networks and devices that use commoncommunication protocols, such as the transmission control protocol(TCP), user datagram protocol (UDP) and the internet protocol (IP) inthe TCP/IP internet protocol suite. The networks 112 may include wiredor wireless communications networks owned and/or operated by otherservice providers. For example, the networks 112 may include anothercore network connected to one or more RANs, which may employ the sameRAT as the RAN 103/104/105 and/or RAN 103 b/104 b/105 b or a differentRAT.

Some or all of the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d in thecommunications system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities, e.g., theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d, and 102 e may include multipletransceivers for communicating with different wireless networks overdifferent wireless links. For example, the WTRU 102 e shown in FIG. 24Amay be configured to communicate with the base station 114 a, which mayemploy a cellular-based radio technology, and with the base station 114c, which may employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

FIG. 24B is a block diagram of an example apparatus or device configuredfor wireless communications in accordance with the embodimentsillustrated herein, such as for example, a WTRU 102. As shown in FIG.24B, the example WTRU 102 may include a processor 118, a transceiver120, a transmit/receive element 122, a speaker/microphone 124, a keypad126, a display/touchpad/indicators 128, non-removable memory 130,removable memory 132, a power source 134, a global positioning system(GPS) chipset 136, and other peripherals 138. It will be appreciatedthat the WTRU 102 may include any sub-combination of the foregoingelements while remaining consistent with an embodiment. Also,embodiments contemplate that the base stations 114 a and 114 b, and/orthe nodes that base stations 114 a and 114 b may represent, such as butnot limited to transceiver station (BTS), a Node-B, a site controller,an access point (AP), a home node-B, an evolved home node-B (eNodeB), ahome evolved node-B (HeNB), a home evolved node-B gateway, and proxynodes, among others, may include some or all of the elements depicted inFIG. 24B and described herein.

The processor 118 may be a general purpose processor, a special purposeprocessor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), aplurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in associationwith a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application SpecificIntegrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGAs)circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine,and the like. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, dataprocessing, power control, input/output processing, and/or any otherfunctionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wirelessenvironment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120,which may be coupled to the transmit/receive element 122. While FIG. 24Bdepicts the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 as separatecomponents, it will be appreciated that the processor 118 and thetransceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package orchip.

The transmit/receive element 122 may be configured to transmit signalsto, or receive signals from, a base station (e.g., the base station 114a) over the air interface 115/116/117. For example, in an embodiment,the transmit/receive element 122 may be an antenna configured totransmit and/or receive RF signals. In an embodiment, thetransmit/receive Although not shown in FIG. 24A, it will be appreciatedthat the RAN 103/104/105 and/or the core network 106/107/109 may be indirect or indirect communication with other RANs that employ the sameRAT as the RAN 103/104/105 or a different RAT. For example, in additionto being connected to the RAN 103/104/105, which may be utilizing anE-UTRA radio technology, the core network 106/107/109 may also be incommunication with another RAN (not shown) employing a GSM radiotechnology.

The core network 106/107/109 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110,and/or other networks 112. The PSTN 108 may include circuit-switchedtelephone networks that provide plain old telephone service (POTS). TheInternet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computernetworks and devices that use common communication protocols, such asthe transmission control protocol (TCP), user datagram protocol (UDP)and the internet protocol (IP) in the TCP/IP internet protocol suite.The networks 112 may include wired or wireless communications networksowned and/or operated by other service providers. For example, thenetworks 112 may include another core network connected to one or moreRANs, which may employ the same RAT as the RAN 103/104/105 or adifferent RAT.

Some or all of the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d in thecommunications system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities, e.g., theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, and 102 d may include multiple transceiversfor communicating with different wireless networks over differentwireless links. For example, the WTRU 102 c shown in FIG. 24A may beconfigured to communicate with the base station 114 a, which may employa cellular-based radio technology, and with the base station 114 b,which may employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

FIG. 24B is a block diagram of an example apparatus or device configuredfor wireless communications in accordance with the embodimentsillustrated herein, such as for example, a WTRU 102. As shown in FIG.24B, the example WTRU 102 may include a processor 118, a transceiver120, a transmit/receive element 122, a speaker/microphone 124, a keypad126, a display/touchpad/indicators 128, non-removable memory 130,removable memory 132, a power source 134, a global positioning system(GPS) chipset 136, and other peripherals 138. It will be appreciatedthat the WTRU 102 may include any sub-combination of the foregoingelements while remaining consistent with an embodiment. Also,embodiments contemplate that the base stations 114 a and 114 b, and/orthe nodes that base stations 114 a and 114 b may represent, such as butnot limited to transceiver station (BTS), a Node-B, a site controller,an access point (AP), a home node-B, an evolved home node-B (eNodeB), ahome evolved node-B (HeNB), a home evolved node-B gateway, and proxynodes, among others, may include some or all of the elements depicted inFIG. 24B and described herein.

The processor 118 may be a general purpose processor, a special purposeprocessor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), aplurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in associationwith a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application SpecificIntegrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGAs)circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine,and the like. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, dataprocessing, power control, input/output processing, and/or any otherfunctionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wirelessenvironment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120,which may be coupled to the transmit/receive element 122. While FIG. 24Bdepicts the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 as separatecomponents, it will be appreciated that the processor 118 and thetransceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package orchip.

The transmit/receive element 122 may be configured to transmit signalsto, or receive signals from, a base station (e.g., the base station 114a) over the air interface 115/116/117. For example, in an embodiment,the transmit/receive element 122 may be an antenna configured totransmit and/or receive RF signals. In an embodiment, thetransmit/receive element 122 may be an emitter/detector configured totransmit and/or receive IR, UV, or visible light signals, for example.In yet an embodiment, the transmit/receive element 122 may be configuredto transmit and receive both RF and light signals. It will beappreciated that the transmit/receive element 122 may be configured totransmit and/or receive any combination of wireless signals.

In addition, although the transmit/receive element 122 is depicted inFIG. 24B as a single element, the WTRU 102 may include any number oftransmit/receive elements 122. More specifically, the WTRU 102 mayemploy MIMO technology. Thus, in an embodiment, the WTRU 102 may includetwo or more transmit/receive elements 122 (e.g., multiple antennas) fortransmitting and receiving wireless signals over the air interface115/116/117.

The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate the signals that areto be transmitted by the transmit/receive element 122 and to demodulatethe signals that are received by the transmit/receive element 122. Asnoted above, the WTRU 102 may have multi-mode capabilities. Thus, thetransceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers for enabling the WTRU102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as UTRA and IEEE 802.11, forexample.

The processor 118 of the WTRU 102 may be coupled to, and may receiveuser input data from, the speaker/microphone 124, the keypad 126, and/orthe display/touchpad/indicators 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display(LCD) display unit or organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display unit).The processor 118 may also output user data to the speaker/microphone124, the keypad 126, and/or the display/touchpad/indicators 128. Inaddition, the processor 118 may access information from, and store datain, any type of suitable memory, such as the non-removable memory 130and/or the removable memory 132. The non-removable memory 130 mayinclude random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk,or any other type of memory storage device. The removable memory 132 mayinclude a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, asecure digital (SD) memory card, and the like. In an embodiment, theprocessor 118 may access information from, and store data in, memorythat is not physically located on the WTRU 102, such as on a server or ahome computer (not shown).

The processor 118 may receive power from the power source 134, and maybe configured to distribute and/or control the power to the othercomponents in the WTRU 102. The power source 134 may be any suitabledevice for powering the WTRU 102. For example, the power source 134 mayinclude one or more dry cell batteries, solar cells, fuel cells, and thelike.

The processor 118 may also be coupled to the GPS chipset 136, which maybe configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude andlatitude) regarding the current location of the WTRU 102. In additionto, or in lieu of, the information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU102 may receive location information over the air interface 115/116/117from a base station (e.g., base stations 114 a, 114 b) and/or determineits location based on the timing of the signals being received from twoor more nearby base stations. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102may acquire location information by way of any suitablelocation-determination method while remaining consistent with anembodiment.

The processor 118 may further be coupled to other peripherals 138, whichmay include one or more software and/or hardware modules that provideadditional features, functionality and/or wired or wirelessconnectivity. For example, the peripherals 138 may include varioussensors such as an accelerometer, biometrics (e.g., finger print)sensors, an e-compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera (forphotographs or video), a universal serial bus (USB) port or otherinterconnect interfaces, a vibration device, a television transceiver, ahands free headset, a Bluetooth® module, a frequency modulated (FM)radio unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game playermodule, an Internet browser, and the like.

The WTRU 102 may be embodied in other apparatuses or devices, such as asensor, consumer electronics, a wearable device such as a smart watch orsmart clothing, a medical or eHealth device, a robot, industrialequipment, a drone, a vehicle such as a car, truck, train, or airplane.The WTRU 102 may connect to other components, modules, or systems ofsuch apparatuses or devices via one or more interconnect interfaces,such as an interconnect interface that may comprise one of theperipherals 138.

FIG. 24C is a system diagram of the RAN 103 and the core network 106according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 103 may employ aUTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, and102 c over the air interface 115. The RAN 103 may also be incommunication with the core network 106. As shown in FIG. 24C, the RAN103 may include Node-Bs 140 a, 140 b, 140 c, which may each include oneor more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102c over the air interface 115. The Node-Bs 140 a, 140 b, 140 c may eachbe associated with a particular cell (not shown) within the RAN 103. TheRAN 103 may also include RNCs 142 a, 142 b. It will be appreciated thatthe RAN 103 may include any number of Node-Bs and RNCs while remainingconsistent with an embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 24C, the Node-Bs 140 a, 140 b may be in communicationwith the RNC 142 a. Additionally, the Node-B 140 c may be incommunication with the RNC 142 b. The Node-Bs 140 a, 140 b, 140 c maycommunicate with the respective RNCs 142 a, 142 b via an Iub interface.The RNCs 142 a, 142 b may be in communication with one another via anIur interface. Each of the RNCs 142 a, 142 b may be configured tocontrol the respective Node-Bs 140 a, 140 b, 140 c to which it isconnected. In addition, each of the RNCs 142 a, 142 b may be configuredto carry out or support other functionality, such as outer loop powercontrol, load control, admission control, packet scheduling, handovercontrol, macro-diversity, security functions, data encryption, and thelike.

The core network 106 shown in FIG. 24C may include a media gateway (MGW)144, a mobile switching center (MSC) 146, a serving GPRS support node(SGSN) 148, and/or a gateway GPRS support node (GGSN) 150. While each ofthe foregoing elements are depicted as part of the core network 106, itwill be appreciated that any one of these elements may be owned and/oroperated by an entity other than the core network operator.

The RNC 142 a in the RAN 103 may be connected to the MSC 146 in the corenetwork 106 via an IuCS interface. The MSC 146 may be connected to theMGW 144. The MSC 146 and the MGW 144 may provide the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b,102 c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, tofacilitate communications between the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c andtraditional land-line communications devices.

The RNC 142 a in the RAN 103 may also be connected to the SGSN 148 inthe core network 106 via an IuPS interface. The SGSN 148 may beconnected to the GGSN 150. The SGSN 148 and the GGSN 150 may provide theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c with access to packet-switched networks, suchas the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between and the WTRUs102 a, 102 b, 102 c and IP-enabled devices.

As noted above, the core network 106 may also be connected to thenetworks 112, which may include other wired or wireless networks thatare owned and/or operated by other service providers.

FIG. 24D is a system diagram of the RAN 104 and the core network 107according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 104 may employ anE-UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, and102 c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be incommunication with the core network 107.

The RAN 104 may include eNode-Bs 160 a, 160 b, 160 c, though it will beappreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of eNode-Bs whileremaining consistent with an embodiment. The eNode-Bs 160 a, 160 b, 160c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c over the air interface 116. In an embodiment,the eNode-Bs 160 a, 160 b, 160 c may implement MIMO technology. Thus,the eNode-B 160 a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmitwireless signals to, and receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102 a.

Each of the eNode-Bs 160 a, 160 b, and 160 c may be associated with aparticular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radioresource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of usersin the uplink and/or downlink, and the like. As shown in FIG. 24D, theeNode-Bs 160 a, 160 b, 160 c may communicate with one another over an X2interface.

The core network 107 shown in FIG. 24D may include a mobility managementgateway (MME) 162, a serving gateway 164, and a packet data network(PDN) gateway 166. While each of the foregoing elements are depicted aspart of the core network 107, it will be appreciated that any one ofthese elements may be owned and/or operated by an entity other than thecore network operator.

The MME 162 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 160 a, 160 b, and160 c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface and may serve as a controlnode. For example, the MME 162 may be responsible for authenticatingusers of the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, bearer activation/deactivation,selecting a particular serving gateway during an initial attach of theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, and the like. The MME 162 may also provide acontrol plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs(not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM or WCDMA.

The serving gateway 164 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 160 a,160 b, and 160 c in the RAN 104 via the S1 interface. The servinggateway 164 may generally route and forward user data packets to/fromthe WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c. The serving gateway 164 may also performother functions, such as anchoring user planes during inter-eNode Bhandovers, triggering paging when downlink data is available for theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, managing and storing contexts of the WTRUs102 a, 102 b, 102 c, and the like.

The serving gateway 164 may also be connected to the PDN gateway 166,which may provide the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c with access topacket-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitatecommunications between the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c and IP-enableddevices.

The core network 107 may facilitate communications with other networks.For example, the core network 107 may provide the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b,102 c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, tofacilitate communications between the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c andtraditional land-line communications devices. For example, the corenetwork 107 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g.,an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interfacebetween the core network 107 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the corenetwork 107 may provide the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c with access to thenetworks 112, which may include other wired or wireless networks thatare owned and/or operated by other service providers.

FIG. 24E is a system diagram of the RAN 105 and the core network 109according to an embodiment. The RAN 105 may be an access service network(ASN) that employs IEEE 802.16 radio technology to communicate with theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, and 102 c over the air interface 117. As will befurther discussed below, the communication links between the differentfunctional entities of the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, the RAN 105, andthe core network 109 may be defined as reference points.

As shown in FIG. 24E, the RAN 105 may include base stations 180 a, 180b, 180 c, and an ASN gateway 182, though it will be appreciated that theRAN 105 may include any number of base stations and ASN gateways whileremaining consistent with an embodiment. The base stations 180 a, 180 b,180 c may each be associated with a particular cell in the RAN 105 andmay include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs102 a, 102 b, 102 c over the air interface 117. In an embodiment, thebase stations 180 a, 180 b, 180 c may implement MIMO technology. Thus,the base station 180 a, for example, may use multiple antennas totransmit wireless signals to, and receive wireless signals from, theWTRU 102 a. The base stations 180 a, 180 b, 180 c may also providemobility management functions, such as handoff triggering, tunnelestablishment, radio resource management, traffic classification,quality of service (QoS) policy enforcement, and the like. The ASNgateway 182 may serve as a traffic aggregation point and may beresponsible for paging, caching of subscriber profiles, routing to thecore network 109, and the like.

The air interface 117 between the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c and the RAN105 may be defined as an R1 reference point that implements the IEEE802.16 specification. In addition, each of the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, and102 c may establish a logical interface (not shown) with the corenetwork 109. The logical interface between the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 cand the core network 109 may be defined as an R2 reference point, whichmay be used for authentication, authorization, IP host configurationmanagement, and/or mobility management.

The communication link between each of the base stations 180 a, 180 b,and 180 c may be defined as an R8 reference point that includesprotocols for facilitating WTRU handovers and the transfer of databetween base stations. The communication link between the base stations180 a, 180 b, 180 c and the ASN gateway 182 may be defined as an R6reference point. The R6 reference point may include protocols forfacilitating mobility management based on mobility events associatedwith each of the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c.

As shown in FIG. 24E, the RAN 105 may be connected to the core network109. The communication link between the RAN 105 and the core network 109may defined as an R3 reference point that includes protocols forfacilitating data transfer and mobility management capabilities, forexample. The core network 109 may include a mobile IP home agent(MIP-HA) 184, an authentication, authorization, accounting (AAA) server186, and a gateway 188. While each of the foregoing elements aredepicted as part of the core network 109, it will be appreciated thatany one of these elements may be owned and/or operated by an entityother than the core network operator.

The MIP-HA may be responsible for IP address management, and may enablethe WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, and 102 c to roam between different ASNs and/ordifferent core networks. The MIP-HA 184 may provide the WTRUs 102 a, 102b, 102 c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 cand IP-enabled devices. The AAA server 186 may be responsible for userauthentication and for supporting user services. The gateway 188 mayfacilitate interworking with other networks. For example, the gateway188 may provide the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c with access tocircuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitatecommunications between the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c and traditionalland-line communications devices. In addition, the gateway 188 mayprovide the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c with access to the networks 112,which may include other wired or wireless networks that are owned and/oroperated by other service providers.

Although not shown in FIG. 24E, it will be appreciated that the RAN 105may be connected to other ASNs and the core network 109 may be connectedto other core networks. The communication link between the RAN 105 theother ASNs may be defined as an R4 reference point, which may includeprotocols for coordinating the mobility of the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 cbetween the RAN 105 and the other ASNs. The communication link betweenthe core network 109 and the other core networks may be defined as an R5reference, which may include protocols for facilitating interworkingbetween home core networks and visited core networks.

The core network entities described herein and illustrated in FIGS. 24A,24C, 24D, and 24E are identified by the names given to those entities incertain existing 3GPP specifications, but it is understood that in thefuture those entities and functionalities may be identified by othernames and certain entities or functions may be combined in futurespecifications published by 3GPP, including future 3GPP NRspecifications. Thus, the particular network entities andfunctionalities described and illustrated in FIGS. 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D,and 24E are provided by way of example only, and it is understood thatthe subject matter disclosed and claimed herein may be embodied orimplemented in any similar communication system, whether presentlydefined or defined in the future.

FIG. 24F is a block diagram of an exemplary computing system 90 in whichone or more apparatuses of the communications networks illustrated inFIGS. 24A, 24C, 24D and 24E may be embodied, such as certain nodes orfunctional entities in the RAN 103/104/105, Core Network 106/107/109,PSTN 108, Internet 110, or Other Networks 112. Computing system 90 maycomprise a computer or server and may be controlled primarily bycomputer readable instructions, which may be in the form of software,wherever, or by whatever means such software is stored or accessed. Suchcomputer readable instructions may be executed within a processor 91, tocause computing system 90 to do work. The processor 91 may be a generalpurpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventionalprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality ofmicroprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSPcore, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific IntegratedCircuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGAs) circuits, anyother type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine, and the like.The processor 91 may perform signal coding, data processing, powercontrol, input/output processing, and/or any other functionality thatenables the computing system 90 to operate in a communications network.Coprocessor 81 is an optional processor, distinct from main processor91, that may perform additional functions or assist processor 91.Processor 91 and/or coprocessor 81 may receive, generate, and processdata related to the methods and apparatuses disclosed herein.

In operation, processor 91 fetches, decodes, and executes instructions,and transfers information to and from other resources via the computingsystem's main data-transfer path, system bus 80. Such a system busconnects the components in computing system 90 and defines the mediumfor data exchange. System bus 80 typically includes data lines forsending data, address lines for sending addresses, and control lines forsending interrupts and for operating the system bus. An example of sucha system bus 80 is the PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) bus.

Memories coupled to system bus 80 include random access memory (RAM) 82and read only memory (ROM) 93. Such memories include circuitry thatallows information to be stored and retrieved. ROMs 93 generally containstored data that cannot easily be modified. Data stored in RAM 82 can beread or changed by processor 91 or other hardware devices. Access to RAM82 and/or ROM 93 may be controlled by memory controller 92. Memorycontroller 92 may provide an address translation function thattranslates virtual addresses into physical addresses as instructions areexecuted. Memory controller 92 may also provide a memory protectionfunction that isolates processes within the system and isolates systemprocesses from user processes. Thus, a program running in a first modecan access only memory mapped by its own process virtual address space;it cannot access memory within another process's virtual address spaceunless memory sharing between the processes has been set up.

In addition, computing system 90 may contain peripherals controller 83responsible for communicating instructions from processor 91 toperipherals, such as printer 94, keyboard 84, mouse 95, and disk drive85.

Display 86, which is controlled by display controller 96, is used todisplay visual output generated by computing system 90. Such visualoutput may include text, graphics, animated graphics, and video. Thevisual output may be provided in the form of a graphical user interface(GUI). Display 86 may be implemented with a CRT-based video display, anLCD-based flat-panel display, gas plasma-based flat-panel display, or atouch-panel. Display controller 96 includes electronic componentsrequired to generate a video signal that is sent to display 86.

Further, computing system 90 may contain communication circuitry, suchas for example a network adapter 97, that may be used to connectcomputing system 90 to an external communications network, such as theRAN 103/104/105, Core Network 106/107/109, PSTN 108, Internet 110, orOther Networks 112 of FIGS. 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D, and 24E, to enable thecomputing system 90 to communicate with other nodes or functionalentities of those networks. The communication circuitry, alone or incombination with the processor 91, may be used to perform thetransmitting and receiving steps of certain apparatuses, nodes, orfunctional entities described herein.

It is understood that any or all of the apparatuses, systems, methodsand processes described herein may be embodied in the form of computerexecutable instructions (e.g., program code) stored on acomputer-readable storage medium which instructions, when executed by aprocessor, such as processors 118 or 91, cause the processor to performand/or implement the systems, methods and processes described herein.Specifically, any of the steps, operations or functions described hereinmay be implemented in the form of such computer executable instructions,executing on the processor of an apparatus or computing systemconfigured for wireless and/or wired network communications. Computerreadable storage media include volatile and nonvolatile, removable andnon-removable media implemented in any non-transitory (e.g., tangible orphysical) method or technology for storage of information, but suchcomputer readable storage media do not includes signals. Computerreadable storage media include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM,EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digitalversatile disks (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassettes,magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices,or any other tangible or physical medium which can be used to store thedesired information and which can be accessed by a computing system.

The following is a list of acronyms relating to access technologies thatmay appear in the above description. Unless otherwise specified, theacronyms used herein refer to the corresponding term listed below.

ACK Acknowledgement AID Association Identifier (802.11) AP Access Point(802.11) APN Access Point Name AS Access Stratum BS Base Station CACollision Avoidance CD Collision Detection CFI Control Format IndicatorCN Core Network CMAS Commercial Mobile Alert System C-RNTI CellRadio-Network Temporary Identifier CSMA Carrier Sensing Multiple Access

CSMA/CD CSMA with Collision DetectionCSMA/CA CSMA with Collision Avoidance

DCA Dedicated Collision Area DCI Downlink Control Information DACTIDynamic Access Configuration Time Interval DL Downlink DRX DiscontinuousReception ECGI E-UTRAN Cell Global Identifier ECM EPS ConnectionManagement

eMBB enhanced Mobile Broadband

EMM EPS Mobility Management eNB Evolved Node B ETWS Earthquake andTsunami Warning System E-UTRA Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio AccessE-UTRAN Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network FDM FrequencyDivision Multiplex FFS For Further Study GERAN GSM EDGE Radio AccessNetwork

GSM Global System for Mobile communications

GUTI Globally Unique Temporary UE Identity HE High Efficiency HSS HomeSubscriber Server IE Information Element IMSI International MobileSubscriber Identity IMT International Mobile Telecommunications KPI KeyPerformance Indicators LTE Long Term Evolution MAC Medium Access ControlMBMS Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service MCL Maximum Coupling LossMIB Master Information Block MME Mobile Management Entity MTCMachine-Type Communications

mMTC Massive Machine Type Communication

NACK Negative Acknowledgement NAS Non-access Stratum NR New Radio OBOOFDM Back-off (802.11) OFDM Orthogonal Frequency Division MultiplexPDCCH Physical Downlink Control Channel PDSCH Physical Downlink SharedChannel PHY Physical Layer PCFICH Physical Control Format IndicatorChannel PDCP Packet Data Convergence Protocol PHICH Physical Hybrid ARQIndicator Channel PPDU PLCP Protocol Data Unit (802.11) PRACH PhysicalRandom Access Channel PRB Physical Resource Block PUCCH Physical UplinkControl Channel PUSCH Physical Uplink Shared Channel QoS Quality ofService RA Random Access RACH Random Access Channel RAN Radio AccessNetwork (3GPP) RMSU Reachability and Mobility Status Update RB ResourceBlock RLC Radio Link Control RNTI Radio Network Temporary Identifier RRCRadio Resource Control RU Resource Unit (802.11) SI System InformationSIB System Information Block SR Scheduling Request STA Station (802.11)TAI Tracking Area Indicator TAU Tracking Area Update TBD To Be DefinedTDM Time Division Multiplex TEID Tunnel Endpoint ID TRP Transmission andReception Point TTI Transmission Time Interval UCI Uplink ControlInformation UE User Equipment UL Uplink UR/LL Ultra Reliable-Low LatencyURLLC Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communications

This written description uses examples to disclose the invention,including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in theart to practice the invention, including making and using any devices orsystems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope ofthe invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examplesthat occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intendedto be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elementsthat do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if theyinclude equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differencesfrom the literal languages of the claims.

1. An apparatus comprising a processor, a memory, and communicationcircuitry, the apparatus being connected to an access network via itscommunication circuitry, the apparatus further comprisingcomputer-executable instructions stored in the memory of the apparatuswhich, when executed by the processor of the apparatus, cause theapparatus to perform operations comprising: receiving an indication ofone or more access allocations for grant-less transmissions; selectingan access allocation of the one or more access allocations so as todefine a selected access allocation; determining a first transmit powerlevel for a grant-less transmission; transmitting, at the first transmitpower level, a first uplink message over the selected access allocationwithout requesting an uplink grant, so as to transmit the grant-lesstransmission; receiving, from the access network, feedback informationfor the grant-less transmission, the feedback information including atransition indication and a power control indication; determining auplink transmission mode to be set as one of the grant-less transmissionor a uplink grant transmission; determining, based on the power controlindication, a second transmit power level for the determinedtransmission mode; transmitting, at the second transmit power level, asecond uplink message as the determined uplink transmission mode.
 2. Theapparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the second uplink messagecorresponds to the first uplink message so that the apparatus canperform a retransmission in the determined uplink transmission mode. 3.The apparatus as recited in claim 2, wherein the determined uplinktransmission mode corresponds to the uplink grant transmission.
 4. Theapparatus as recited in claim 2, the apparatus further comprisingcomputer-executable instructions stored in the memory of the apparatuswhich, when executed by the processor of the apparatus, cause theapparatus to perform further operations comprising: determining toperform the retransmission in response to a grant-less transmissiontimer expiring.
 5. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein thefeedback information is transmitted in downlink control channel for thegrant-less transmission.
 6. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, whereindetermining the first transmit power level and the second transmit powerlevel comprises performing a path loss estimation.
 7. The apparatus asrecited in claim 6, the apparatus further comprising computer-executableinstructions stored in the memory of the apparatus which, when executedby the processor of the apparatus, cause the apparatus to performfurther operations comprising: receiving a synchronization signal or areference signal from the access network; and using the synchronizationsignal or the reference signal to perform the path loss estimation. 8.The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein determining the firsttransmit power level and the second transmit power level furthercomprises performing a modulation and coding scheme for the grant-lesstransmission.
 9. An apparatus comprising a processor, a memory, andcommunication circuitry, the apparatus being connected to a userequipment via its communication circuitry, the apparatus furthercomprising computer-executable instructions stored in the memory of theapparatus which, when executed by the processor of the apparatus, causethe apparatus to perform operations comprising: sending an indication ofone or more access allocations for grant-less transmissions; selectingan access allocation of the one or more access allocations so as todefine a selected access allocation; receiving a first uplink messageover the selected access allocation without requesting an uplink grant,the first uplink message being sent by the user equipment at a firsttransmit power level for a grant-less transmission; transmitting, to theuser equipment, feedback information for the grant-less transmission,the feedback information including a transition indication and a powercontrol indication; receiving, at a second transmit power level, asecond uplink message as a determined uplink transmission mode, whereinthe determined uplink transmission mode is set as one of the grant-lesstransmission or a uplink grant transmission based on the feedbackinformation, and the second transmit power level for the determinedtransmission mode is determined based on the power control indication.10. The apparatus as recited in claim 9, wherein the second uplinkmessage corresponds to the first uplink message so that the apparatuscan perform a retransmission in the determined uplink transmission mode.11. The apparatus as recited in claim 10, wherein the determined uplinktransmission mode corresponds to the uplink grant transmission.
 12. Theapparatus as recited in claim 11, the apparatus further comprisingcomputer-executable instructions stored in the memory of the apparatuswhich, when executed by the processor of the apparatus, cause theapparatus to perform further operations comprising: determining toperform the retransmission in response to a grant-less transmissiontimer expiring.
 13. The apparatus as recited in claim 9, wherein thefeedback information is transmitted in downlink control channel for thegrant-less transmission.
 14. The apparatus as recited in claim 9,wherein the first transmit power level and the second transmit powerlevel are determined by performing a path loss estimation.
 15. Theapparatus as recited in claim 14, the apparatus further comprisingcomputer-executable instructions stored in the memory of the apparatuswhich, when executed by the processor of the apparatus, cause theapparatus to perform further operations comprising: transmitting, to theuser equipment, a synchronization signal or a reference signal from theaccess network, wherein the user equipment is configured to use thesynchronization signal or the reference signal to perform the path lossestimation.
 16. The apparatus as recited in claim 15, wherein the firsttransmit power level and the second transmit power level are determinedby performing a modulation and coding scheme for the grant-lesstransmission.
 17. A method for wireless communication with a userequipment, the method comprising: sending an indication of one or moreaccess allocations for grant-less transmissions; selecting an accessallocation of the one or more access allocations so as to define aselected access allocation; receiving a first uplink message over theselected access allocation without requesting an uplink grant, the firstuplink message being sent by the user equipment at a first transmitpower level for a grant-less transmission; transmitting, to the userequipment, feedback information for the grant-less transmission, thefeedback information including a transition indication and a powercontrol indication; receiving, at a second transmit power level, asecond uplink message as a determined uplink transmission mode, whereinthe determined uplink transmission mode is set as one of the grant-lesstransmission or a uplink grant transmission based on the feedbackinformation, and the second transmit power level for the determinedtransmission mode is determined based on the power control indication.